Slacker

I am such a slacker, well when it comes to blogging lately.

In all other sense of the word, I am completely opposite of a slacker. I have been so swamped with school, the kids, observation hours for school, I just taught a coupon class, and on top of all that, my hubby lost his job a couple weeks ago. So he has recently started working away from home and has been gone for a week already. Hopefully he will only be gone another week.

So my juggling of duties has increased ten fold. I'm not really even sure what "ten fold" means, but I'm pretty sure it fits in the context of what I'm talking about :) But even with the setback of a layoff in our house, it has been a pretty productive fall. I have done TONS of canning this season! Pictures to come soon! I will try to be more updated!

Diet update!

Hello all, it's been a while and I have been super busy with school and "other" stuff. But I wanted to let you all know that I hit my goal of losing 30lbs by August! I was so excited when I stepped on the scale August 3rd and saw that glorious number! (Not that I'm ready to tell you what that number was). Yes I said WAS. Since I hit my 30 pound weight loss target, I have lost another 5 pounds! I am completely thrilled and want to lose another 20 by December. Ouch those Holidays are gonna be rough. Wish me luck. And I will try to be more on top of updating!

Why having a Toddler is Like Being at a Frat Party

Saw this on a friend's blog and had to re-post. It's so true (Even if I don't have a girl, boys work for #9 too!)

Why Having a Toddler is Like Being at a Frat Party

10. There are half-full, brightly-colored plastic cups on the floor in every room. Three are in the bathtub.
9. There’s always that one girl, bawling her eyes out in a corner.
8. It’s best not to assume that the person closest to you has any control over their digestive function.
7. You sneak off to the bathroom knowing that as soon as you sit down, someone’s going to start banging on the door.
6. Probably 80% of the stains on the furniture contain DNA.
5. You’ve got someone in your face at 3 a.m. looking for a drink.
4. There’s definitely going to be a fight.
3. You’re not sure whether anything you’re doing is right, you just hope it won’t get you arrested.
2. There are crumpled-up underpants everywhere.
1. You wake up wondering exactly how and when the person in bed with you got there.

Bandwagon blues...

Oh I have a bit of the bandwagon blues this week. After a great streak with my new diet/exercise plan of losing about 2-3 plans per week, we took a weekend trip to Sun Valley to watch Ben run in the Sawtooth Relay and I kind of fell off the diet bandwagon :(

Now it wasn't completely horrible, I gained 4 pounds over the weekend. Which I contribute mostly to eating out A LOT! And probably some empty calories due to some "adult" beverages :)

So this week is some serious work getting it off, which I have to say I am pretty confident I can do it! Everything else in the diet is going well, still no soda, lots of water, not as much time at the gym as I would like (but I try to make up for it at home). I have even found some really great recipes that give me the ratio of more protein than carbs in my meals! I am still really excited about the changes that have been happening!

I am feeling better, not nearly as tired as I use to be! I think the no soda is a huge part of that. The fact that it's summer and I can be out and about with my boys makes a big difference too, summer camping and being outdoors here we come!

So I am hopping back on the bandwagon and working my booty off (literally hopefully!) Wish me luck!

Deals and Steals!

So first things first...
The diet is going well. Still a challenge to hit 1200 calories every day but I am managing. I was able to lose 3 pounds last week! Wahoo! This puts me right on schedule to lose 30 lbs by August! As long as I keep up with losing 2-3 lbs a week, I will hit my goal and be healthier too!

Now onto the Deals!

I am sure most of you have seen TLC's "Extreme Couponing". If you haven't then you should! It's totally addicting and I get a rush off of just watching them save hundred's of dollars every shopping trip! Not that I am even going to be close to that level, the people featured on that show seem to be like professional hoarders to me. Clearing the shelves every time and buying upwards of 40 of the same item at a time. Why would you ever need 200 deodorant sticks?

Anyway, for my first trip I was pretty excited! Here's how it went...
First stop Walgreens.
I was able to buy 2 Suave naturals body lotion
2 Vaseline men's extra strength body lotion

Walgreen's had a sale for these 4 for $12.00, with a $4.00 register rewards. I also combined 2 $1/1 Suave body lotion manufacture coupons and 2 $1/1 Vaseline products to make the total to $8 with $4.00 register rewards! I was pretty psyched about this, but what came next was even better!

Second stop: Fred Meyer

I bought: 5 Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce
2 Suave Shampoos
2 Suave Conditioners

For the BBQ sauce I combined 3 coupons. One Fred Meyer coupon for 5 BBQ sauces for $5. Then I had a $1/3 manufacture coupon. Then I used my register rewards that I had just earned at Walgreens and put it towards my purchase at Fred Meyer.

Making all the BBQ sauces completely FREE!

For the Suave products, I had a Fred Meyer coupon for them each at .79 cents, then I had 2 manufacture coupons for .50/2 suave shampoo or conditioner products.

Total including tax (coupons don't deduct tax) for Fred Meyer was $2.65!
Check it out!

1200 Calories? No biggie?

Starting this new diet/exercise regiment is harder than I thought it would be, but not for the reason that I thought would be difficult!

Does that even make sense?

I am able to calculate all of my carbs/fiber/sugar/calories easily with the help of my handy dandy "Complete Food Counter" I got from Barnes & Noble. And I'm able to jot it all down in my food/exercise journal along with my exercise stuff and how many calories I burn and all that jazz.

That's not the hard part.

I am supposed to be at at least 1200 calories each day. No less than 1200 calories. I never thought that it would be hard to reach that, but geez!

The past two days (since that's the time I've spent on this diet) I haven't hit 1200 calories. I got close yesterday. Here's what I had...

Breakfast:
2 scrambled eggs (199 cal., 2 carbs, 0 fiber) = 0.4 tsp sugar
1/2 C. strawberries (23 cal., 5.5 carbs, 1.5 fiber) = 0.8 tsp sugar
Bottled water

Lunch at Olive Garden (I was a little worried about this, but thanks to their online site, they give all nutrition facts and serving sizes for every meal!)
Soup: Zuppa Toscana (170 cal., 24 carbs, 2 fiber) = 4.4 tsp sugar
Chicken Spledini (460 cal., 26 carbs, 7 fiber) = 3.8 tsp sugar
4 glasses of water (I was really thirsty I guess)

I at lunch so late that I didn't really eat dinner, but I had a light snack around 8 pm, plus a couple snacks throughout the day which add up to:

3 cheese sticks (240 cal., 3 carb, 0 fiber) = 0.6 tsp. sugar
40 pretzel sticks (90 cal., 20 carb, 1 fiber) = 3.8 tsp sugar

So putting it all together for the day:
Calories: 1182
Carb: 80.5
Fiber: 11.5
Tsp Sugar: 13.8

So remember how I am figuring out my sugar intake?

Carbs - Fiber= answer divided by 5

That will give me the number of tsp of sugar I am taking in.
And I need to have between 10-14 per day.

I know I was close on the calories yesterday, but man is it hard! Plus I went to the gym for the first time in...well...a long time, let's just say that, a long time! And I burned more calories there.

Needless to say, I am feeling great but frustrated about hitting 1200 calories. I have tons of energy and am really excited about the changes to come. I'm sure after I get the hang of things it will be easier to figure out things and I wont have to harp over every meal of the day, but until then, I am carrying my little book and journal with me everywhere I go.

Big Changes!

If you have seen me lately, you probably would have noticed something, or a few things. Like the extra pound(s) I have put on. :(

I realized a few months ago that I need to start taking better care of myself. I have been putting school, the kids, housework, and my hubby first. While I love all of these things (well minus the school and housework) I really need to put myself first.

I'm not one of those people that can immediately make life/diet/routine changes drastically. I sort of have to ease my way into it to get the full affects.

So in February, I quit drinking soda! I was drinking about 4 cans of Dr. Pepper almost daily! I know some people get a beer gut, mine has turned into a DP gut. Quitting was hard for about the first 2 weeks, but since then it hasn't been bad.


Water has become one of my best friends! I have replaced my DP with water, which I end up drinking between 4-5 bottles/day! I even bought a soda the other day (not DP because I didn't want to get back on the wagon) a Cherry Coke, which is a close second to DP. I drank maybe a quarter of it and almost immediately felt the effects.

BLOATING
BATHROOM BREAKS EVERY 10 MINUTES
STOMACH ACHES

I realized after this little experiment that I was in the right for quitting soda. I feel so much better without it!

Once I mastered my Soda addiction, it was time to make some smart food changes. I have started slowly incorporating whole wheat into my diet (and my family's) along with switching from white to brown rice. I never thought that I would like brown, only growing up on white. But surprisingly, I like it better, and it's healthier for me. So that also makes me like it a little more.

I found this amazing website/blog that I am in LOVE with!

SkinnyTaste.com

This website is full of low fat recipes that are easy to make with step by step instructions. Every recipe comes with a breakdown of carbs, fat, sugar, calories, serving sizes, and more! I have already started to incorporate many of the dishes into our family dinners, and they are a hit!

Since quitting soda and changing up my eating habits (mostly with dinner) I have lost 15 pounds since February.

I'm really excited about the changes that have been happening so far, but I have a lot of work that I need to do, I would like to lose around 50 pounds more! 50! I know it sounds like a lot, but it is definitely needed!

My Aunt has been a huge inspirations to me. In the last year and couple months she has made a huge lifestyle change and has lost nearly 100 pounds! She looks incredible and says that she feels so much healthier!

My next change I am going to work on is my daily sugar intake, and getting to the gym. I have a gym membership, I just need to use it. I think I am going to try to start out going about 3 days a week at first and work my way up to 6. It's not the working out that is hard, it's just getting my butt over there!

With the sugar, my Aunt taught me a way for figure out how much sugar I am taking in. Find out how many carbs there are. Then find out the fiber. Then use this equation:

CARBS - FIBER= ?
THEN TAKE THAT ANSWER AND DIVIDE BY 5.
THIS WILL GIVE YOU THE NUMBER OF TSP OF SUGAR

If I remember correctly it is Tsp and not TBSP. And the limit of sugar to have in a day is 12 tsp. That sounds like a lot, but really it's not, and it's going to be a tough challenge but I am up for it!

I will be posting results probably once a month with my progress, challenges, and successes. Hopefully there will be more of the latter!

Here we go!

How to survive a weekend of Birthday parties and Easter Get-togethers:

This weekend was INSANE! We had Wyatt's 3rd birthday party on Saturday, and of course Easter was Sunday and we had friends and family coming over for a feast and an egg hunt. How did we get things done?

1st: bring kids to daycare on Friday so mom can get all shopping and party decorating done!
2nd: Shop at 5 different stores to get groceries, party supplies, decorations, etc.
3rd: start making a pretty sweet cake


My first fondant use, I rolled it out, died it purple then cut it into spikes, a tongue, and a pair of eyes for the dinosaur cake.


After baking 2 9" round cakes I cut them into the shape of the dinosaur (froze them for about 30 minutes though to make it easier to cut without falling apart).

Then I added the frosting, eyes, and spikes! It turned out so nice!

Once the cake was done, it was smooth sailing! Getting the house clean wasn't too bad, food was ready to go, decorations were up, pinata filled, dinosaur games ready to go, and birthday boy so excited for his party!

Wyatt with his big brother moments before the party guests arrive! Aren't they so cute!

The party went off without a hitch. Games were played and kids were filled with candy then pushed back to their parents for the inevitable sugar rush to come. It was a great weekend, but man am I exhausted!

It's creeping in...I can feel it!

The middle of April is here, and you know what that means! Two more weeks of classes, then finals.

I'm sure you are all as excited as me over this fact :)

Not.

This is how I really feel, I'm not sure which way to go?


I think I am halfway into both...think I can drive down the median? Didn't think so.

I'm sure Ben (the hubby) dreads these last two weeks of school as much as I do. Nothing gets done around the house, I am stressed out, sleep deprived, grumpy, and SUPER BUSY!!!

With any luck I will be able to survive the next couple weeks without looking like this...



I mean this is a great look, but blonde is just not my color.

My Saving Grace...

I am so grateful for some wonderful girls in my life that want to help contribute to my slow cooker predicament!

I have felt lately that our dinner routine has gotten to be just that, a routine. A rotation of dinners that we know and love, a little to often.

So the slow cooker has come into play.

Chelsea was awesome and sent me a pork roast recipe that I can't wait to try, next shopping trip for sure!

Bree lent me her slow cooker recipe book, with tons to choose from. I am actually going to try out the Dijon Pork chops in the slow cooker for tomorrow! I am really excited for that one.

Here's a photo of Bree and I! Such a good friend, and love that she is willing to contribute to my slow cooker preparedness!

And then there is this amazing blog/website I found that I think is going to be my favorite! EVER!

You have to check out www.skinnytaste.com

This woman is amazing! She has so many recipes, all low fat, and all amazing! I have already done a couple things from her site and am very impressed. She has so many things to cook. Everything from drinks and appetizers, to snacks and desserts. AMAZING!

So the cooking pick-me-up is going well, and we are all enjoying it, along with our bellies!

Personal Alphabet...

I saw this on a friends blog (Jessica) and thought it was kind of fun!

A - Attached or Single: Attached. I sure am a lucky woman!
B - Best Friend: Amber and Chels. Even if I need to be better at it! I love you girls!
C - Cake or Pie: Pie every day of the week!
D - Day of choice: Saturday! No work, school, just play time!
E - Essential Item: Cell phone, and planner!
F - Favorite Color: Pink, shocking right!?!
G - Gummy Bears or Worms: Bears, the white/clear ones specifically.
H - Hometown: Ammon, ID. Wahoo!
I - Indulgence(s): Twizzlers sweet and Sour, Dr. Pepper (recently quit)
J - January or July: July. January is freezing!
K - Kids: Love mine, but they can sure get on my nerves sometimes!
L - Life is incomplete without: My wonderful family, friends, and see items from column I
M - Marriage Date: 1/8/05 I know I just said I don't like January, but it sure was beautiful!

N - Number of Siblings: 3 plus 2 brother in laws, 2 sister in laws, 4 step brother in laws and 1 step sister in law. I know it's a little crazy, but we love it!
O - Oranges or Apples: Apples, I love oranges too, but they are too acidic for me. I get major stomach aches.
P - Phobias or Fears: Spiders and Snakes, and I am terrified whenever I go somewhere new that I am going to lose my children or somebody is going to take them. I know I'm paranoid.
Q - Quotes: I don't believe in quoting other people, make your own stamp on the world!
R - Reason to smile: babies, weddings, a good love story, kisses from my boys!
S - Season: It's a tie between summer and fall. Summer is the host of the hottest weather and my birthday, but fall is so beautiful with the colors and leaves!
T - Tag Three Friends: Probably the only ones that will read this, Chels, Bree, and ummm?...Angela?
U - Unknown fact about me: I get seriously nervous about talking to people I don't know, especially if they are some sort of authority figure. Silly I know.
V - Very favorite Store: Oooh, IKEA maybe, or Tai Pan Trading. I can't choose!
W - Worst habit: Biting my nails, I used to do it a lot more, but whenever I get really nervous, I start to bite again.
X - X-ray or Ultrasound: Depends on where it's at. I've never had an X-ray. But I've had a few ultrasounds. The stomach ones aren't bad, but I had one on my ankle that KILLED!
Y - Your favorite food: I dunno, I like almost anything. But if I had to choose, probably Turkey Rex (family recipe)
Z - Zodiac:Cancer, I know that makes me crabby :)

The Pot...

This is a crock pot...



I'm sure you all knew that already.

You would think that being the busy mom that I am, I would invest more of my time in one of these, instead of doing the majority of my cooking on Sunday evenings and eating basically leftovers for the rest of the week while I am at school.

You would think...

However, this just isn't the case. I have recently received Crock Pot Cooking 101 tips from some close friends, and I am going to give it a try. But I need some help.

I only have a few recipes that will work for it. I did a roast the other day, and I made some Chicken Taco Soup that was delicious. But there was somebody home, either my husband or myself to monitor the food.

My issue I have with doing crock pot food is that I am gone for LONG days. I leave around 7 am and don't get home until around 5pm Monday-Thursday. Which means that I would need to leave it in "the pot" for at least 9 hours. And I don't want things to overcook, dry out, etc.

So this is where you come in...
I need some yummy recipes for crock pots that can survive a 9 hour cooking session on low, without having to be turned, or stirred, or pulled apart half way through. HELP!!!

I really want to make this work, because my Sunday nights are getting long, and eating right out of the pot sounds so much better!

You can leave recipes here, or leave me your email and I will send you my email address and we can exchange ideas! Thanks so much!

Spring Cleaning...ya I know

I hate cleaning...REALLY hate cleaning.

But school has been seriously busy this semester, so I really haven't done much. And since my spring break started officially on Friday, my Spring Cleaning officially started today. Unintentionally actually.

I started off sweeping the entryway...
then I mopped it.

Then I had the kids clean up their rooms...
then I vacuumed them.

As I started making my way vacuuming down the hallway, I stopped at the hallway (kids) bathroom. I decided it needed a little pick-me-up too.
Toilet clean
Walls washed
Garbage out
Mirror clean
Sink clean
Floors washed by hand

I know! I am just as shocked as you are! And that wasn't even all I did!

Then the kitchen/living room was calling my name.
Dishes got washed
Floor swept
Counters washed
Dinner started (yummy chicken taco soup!)
Living room vacuumed
All the while doing laundry in between all the other stuff, and wiping down walls as I made my way through the house.

It took a few hours in all, but it was seriously needed. Tomorrow I plan on cleaning the master bathroom/bedroom and the house should be done! So yes I hate cleaning, but I LOVE a clean house! Happy Spring Cleaning everyone! (Willing to clean for $50/hour!) haha

Daylight savings is really a savior!

Every year I usually dread daylight savings time in the spring because that means it is lighter outside later.

Which means my kids want to stay up later.

Which means I go crazy.

Just a little.

I was terrified this particular spring because the boys for the past month or so have been waking up REALLY early.

So I figured they would be staying up later, and getting up earlier.

Making for crabby, sleepy children.

And an even crabbier, sleepy mommy.

But no. They have been going to bed around 8pm. Which is the normal time, but I have been able to sleep until my alarm goes off!

I know nobody ever gets excited about an alarm, but I do if I can sleep until it goes off!

I have actually had to wake my kids up the past couple of days.

It's bliss.

Happy sleeping!

My addiction...

Everyone has their vices, some more than most. I came to the realization today after receiving a package in the mail what mine really is (or at least what it's becoming).

SHOES!!!

Hey it's better than alcohol or drugs right? That's what I thought. So here is the latest addition!


I got them to go with my dress for my Interview I have next week for the Education Program at ISU. (Because every shoe has to have a specific purpose or outfit! Duh!) Ben doesn't quite understand, but I have my justification for this pair at least. It's for an important interview that I need to look absolutely PERFECT for! So that's my deal, but if you have the same problem as me, maybe we should create a CSA group (Cute Shoeaholics Anonymous) That is a word you know. I'm an English major, I would know!

The dishes can wait...

Today Adam has been sick, Wyatt is tired of being cooped up, and Ben is just plain grumpy. Being a Sunday I wanted to do something as a family that doesn't require leaving the house. So I decided after dinner, the piles (and I mean piles) of dishes could wait. We broke out the JENGA! We broke up into teams, I think Ben got the short end of the stick because he got Wyatt, and Adam really surprised me on how good he was!

Of course Ben wouldn't give me a nice smile, but the boys were so excited to play, they gave me the best smiles they had! Love them!

Wyatt was psyched to get involved, he just kept banging the table when he and Ben got one out, almost knocking over the tower from excitement.

Adam was actually REALLY good at Jenga. I was surprised at how steady his hands were. Even though I had to direct him to the parts he could remove, he did an awesome job!


I love this picture because it shows just how excited Wyatt was every time they got a piece out. He would look so nervous then start clapping like crazy when it was done!

But the best part was Ben...


His face says it all! We played two games, and each time it fell, his face looked exactly the same. Wyatt's did too actually, closed eyes and everything.

So moral of the story is that the dishes can wait, have some fun with the family, it's the best!

My beautiful gas guzzler!

Having a family of four, that will be growing even larger in the future (don't worry I'm not making any announcements, yet) means that we need a vehicle that can hold all of us. Let me put this out there that I am NOT a minivan kind of mom, and I think my hubby would freak out if I ever came home with one. So this is what I drive...

As beautiful and convenient as it is to drive and how practical it is for our family, I feel like I am giving my first born to the gas station every time I have to fill it up! I've always been used to paying a little more at the pump seeing as we have always owned some type of SUV and my husband's truck, but I had a silent heart attack this morning when I saw that gas prices have gone up 10 cents in a week! A WEEK! This pushes my tank to cost around $80 when I fill it up!
GRRR! That's my piece for the week, sorry I had to vent! Why do I have to love my vehicle so much!?!

I dont know who you're talking about!?!

Lately, and I say lately as in for the last month or so, my boys have been difficult sleepers. They haven't wanted to go to bed, and once they do, they keep getting up. Adam usually only once, but Wyatt, a ton!
The other day, after putting him back to bed for probably the 4th time that night, he thought that using a disguise would help his chances of staying up. Here's how it went:

Sound of Wyatt's bedroom door creaking...

Me: "Wyatt?"

Wyatt: "I'm not Wyatt..."

Me: "Wy what are you doing, go back to bed."

Wyatt: "I said my name is not Wyatt!"

Then this little stranger comes around the corner...


With backpack on upside down, snow hat on backwards snow boots on and pet monkey in tow, Wyatt tried to convince us that he was asleep, and this was somebody else! Gotta love their imagination.

Organization central

Since Ben has been on hiatus from work, and he is home a lot more often now, we have gone into organization mode. More me than him seeing as how he really can't do much but give directions with his gimpy arm.

Even though he can't do much, he is still as hot as ever with his silly sling. Oops, I mean MANLY sling!

Anyway, so while he is handicapped for the next while, we needed to get some shelves put up in our basement. It's all unfinished and our "office" area was getting way too crowded and messy. So up the shelves had to go, with the strength of good ole' me!

Step 1: Lay everything out, and yes that camcorder box is essential to putting up metal shelving! Duh!









Step 2: Hire the "little" helpers. They may have been a little short for the job, but they were all I could afford. Child labor is cheap these days. Payment = lollipop!

Step 3: Finish putting together and fill up with "stuff". Gotta love being a handy momma!

Superwoman 101: Loves and Hates about Valentine's Day

Superwoman 101: Loves and Hates about Valentine's Day: "I LOVE that there is a special day set aside to tell people you love them! I HATE when people complain about not being in a relationship. (..."