Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Back at the beginning on last year I came up with some rewards for myself for pounds lost.  I earned a hair cut way back when but when there was time, there wasn't any money and when there was money, well.. you know how it goes.
Today I FINALLY got my hair cut.

BEFORE:

(my 8 year old took this picture for me)

AFTER:

(the hubs took this one for me)

It feels great to shred all of that hair!  Now to start shredding some serious weight again!!

Week 38

No ups. No downs, just holdin' steady.

This isn't a mystery.  One day I do great, the next day, not so great.  But I'm not gaining!!  And more importantly, I'm not giving up!

Ok - review time!  I have tried a new Leslie Sansone workout DVD, 5 Mile Fat Burning Walk.  Before today I had only done one mile as I've been both pressed for time and completely out of breath by the end of mile one.  These "walking" miles are revved up on this DVD - "fat burning walks" that are now kicked into high impact.  It's great!!  When I would do her "Walk The Walk" video I could do 2 miles, work up a sweat but really wouldn't be out of breath - but this one, wooo.  But can I just say that as I go into the jogging part that I feel as if I should be able to simply unzip and step out of the fat suit that is jiggling up and down with each step!  Each time I do it I guess I need to look at it as a few more notches being unzipped on that suit, right?  Well today I decided that I wanted to just 'see' what mile two looked like and to my delight, I did all of mile two remaining at the high impact level!!  I think I actually preferred the second mile to the first.  How long before I can do all 5 miles?  Not sure if that's a matter of physical fitness and endurance or a measure of how long my boys will allow me to have that time to myself.

I also have been trying a new Tortilla (new to me - suggested by short term weight loss group I've been going to e/o Thursday).  They are super yummy (really!) and only 80 calories, 3 g fat, 0 cholesterol, 18 g carbs, 12g dietary fiber! and 8g of protein per tortilla. SCORE!  So what, they're like the size of a Reece's right? (sure, I had to bring chocolate into it!) No, they are really a good size and take up most of a dinner sized plate.  You can find them usually near your deli, but not on the rack that's just underneath the deli display case.  Usually in a wire rack thingy nearby.

Have I told you much about the talk I'll be giving on the 24th?  Well actually, it's more like three skits with talks in-between each.  It's a spoof on the Price Is Right called What'$ It Worth?!  Each silly round will be an introduction/spring board for each point that I will speak on; Having the Joy of the Lord, God's Word is Truth and Salvation.  We had rehearsal on Sunday evening and we laughed and laughed.  How exciting it is to see this idea that God have given me about two years ago coming to fruition.  Would you please pray for me that this event would come together to give glory to God and that He would bring out the ladies He wants to hear the message.  Also pray for all of those in the performance and me as the speaker.  I pray that I would say nothing other than what the Lord would have me say.

I am also begining to prepare for a talk I will be giving at another church in October for their ladies breakfast.  It will be on walking with the Lord.  This will be my first time speaking to ladies that I totally don't know.  But they are sisters-in-Christ and so I'm sure I will feel very welcome and at home.

Thank you all so much for your continued support and encouragement!!

It's time to get  a whole buncha work done!!

Have a great week and make good choices! :)

Week 37

Oh my goodness, write me up I'm late again!

I've been so side tracked this week.  My baby started Kindergarten this past Tuesday.  Where in the world does the time go?  It seems like one day you're yelling "Calgone!" when you walk in to find your once sleeping baby on top of the changing table covered from head to toe in Vaseline and then the next day you're sending them off on that big yellow scarey contraption otherwise known as the school bus.  Woosh!!.

Here's a picture of my adorable little Dennis the Menace (my sister's nickname for him - all in love!!) while waiting for the school bus.

Love our driver, but the bus just makes me nervous.  Always hear stories of kids being left on or some such thing.  Before you tell me it's not a realistic fear, let me just share that I had to chase the bus down last year to get my older son off and yesterday one of my best friends had to chase the bus to get her Kindergartener off!! It does happen!  But, thankfully I can be there to get them off so I'll be there with running shoes on should the need present itself :)

What else have I been doing this week?  Writing and writing..  I have two talks coming up.  One on the 24th at my home church where I need to write a three act script along with my three points of discussion: The Joy of the Lord, God's Word is Truth and Salvation.  This should really be a fun event!!  I don't want to give much away in case any of the gals from church should read this - but it will be unlike anything else we've ever done!!  I have completed the script, please pray for God's guidance as I write on the three discussion points above.

Then I have anothet talk on Oct. 2nd where I will be speaking at a woman's breakfast at a church a few towns away.  They have not given me any directive, I am to speak on what God gives me.  I think I know the direction to go in, but would love some prayers for guidance.

As far as both talks go, I pray that I would just be a vessel that God would use and that any of my own quirks, etc.. would not hinder the ladies from hearing what God has to say to them.  I am terrified and honored to be called to this ministry.  God is amazing!!

Along with all of this, I'm still job searching.. Sigh!  But again, God is good and He will provide!!

Ok, health wise...

Last week I had a fantastic week!!  I ate great and tracked (started having salads again which quite frankly I had taken a hiatis from for about a month), drank plenty of water and did 4 cardio workouts.  I felt great!!!!  Then the weekend came... Ok, I just jumped into the feed trough whole hog!!  I had ice cream, pasta with cream sauce, (are your arteries hardening just reading this?).. Not good.  But thankfully, Monday started a new week and I've been back on track.  I really need to put time aside for workouts again though.  If anthing, it would probably help me to think more clearly as I read, study and write!  I purchased a new Leslie Sansone DVD the other day.  Haven't tried it out yet, but I'll be ready to review it for next week.

This week for some reason I've been on a big Egg Beaters with broccoli kick. Soooo yummy and filling!  Give it a try, or jazz up your eggs with other veggies.  Also been diggin some sliced bananas and strawberries together. Again, super filling and very sweet!  At night I've enjoyed dipping pretzels into a wedge of Laughing Cow light cheese.  You get 20 mini pretzels in a serving (nice generous portion size!) for 110 calories and 0 fat!  Then Laughing Cow (still really not sure what these bovine find so humorous??) is just 35 calories a wedge and 1.5 g of fat!  Ahhh... Life is good.

To be honest, I didn't weigh this week.  I'd do it now, but where it's later in the afternoon I've already had breakfast, snack, lunch.. and I typically weigh first thing in the morning.  I'm so sad, I'll just wait until next Monday (mwahhhahhhahhh).

Today I actually have two sick boys on my hands so I'm off to offer a little tlc.

I hope you all have a great week!!

It's time to go read to my little men.

Week 33

THANK YOU to all of you for your support and encouragement as I've been battling these last few weeks to not allow myself to throw in the towel. Your encouragement really means so much to me!!

Last week was lots of fun!! We went up to New Hampshire with my sister and sister-in-law to take the kids to Storyland. The drive up wasn't too bad (except for the cramps in my legs as we had to squeeze bags under my legs due to lack of car space), especially by the time we got into the White Mountains (beautiful!!!!!!) ears poppin' and all. The weather was pretty terrific the whole time and even the motel we stayed in was great! (Seriously, a great motel - I can't say as I usually pair those two words together)

Storyland was lots of fun! There's nothing better than seeing your kids laughing and squealing and just having a blast!!! The nice thing for me was that it helped me to get tons of walking in.

The only non-terrific part was my food choices. On one hand, ya it was vacation. But on the other, I still could have enjoyed some treats without going whole hog. And I do mean whole hog!! Take a look at this:

Yup, that's me scarfing down a gallon and a half of ice cream in the billion calories chocolate and nut covered 'cone'. I will say, this was amazing!!!!!! But I felt like I had eaten incredibly delicious lead afterwards. Was it ok to have ice cream? Sure! But did I really need have that much? And the cone.. seriously?? (Ok, it was fabulous!!)

But hey, what's done is done. So what am I going to do to help myself going forward so I can get back on track and stop the whole pointless self-loathing thing? Well I tell ya, I've got a plan!!

My sister-in-law's sister has lost 60 pounds and looks amazing!! She and another gal have started a group that meets for five weeks (meeting every other week) at one of their homes where they have a talk about healthy living and do a weigh in. The cost is a onetime fee of $20. At the end of the 5 weeks cash prizes are awarded for those who have lost the greatest percentage of body fat. So, informative supportive classes and a contest? I'm there baby!! You don't have to follow any special program; it's about learning to lead a healthy life - not dieting (which I am superdeduper against 'diets'). Weigh in is this Thursday. Nervous about getting on the scale in front of someone, but excited to have new motivation!! I'll keep you posted on how it's going.

This week... sigh... I'm still trying to get back to the basics. It's hard quite frankly. It's a busy time of year (she types rolling her eyes knowing how ridiculous it sounds considering the whole summer has been busy). Time to get ready for back to school (my baby is going to Kindergarten and my big guy is off to 3rd grade!), all of the Women's Ministry activities are back in swing (more to come on this), still searching for what the Lord would have me do for work (please continue to pray).... But back to basics it must be!

What did the scale say this week you may wonder... Nothing.. Well actually it said "you stayed the same - try again next week". Ok, not actually. No worries, I don't think the scale is 'speaking to me', but I did stay the same. I'll take it. Better than a gain!

I hope you all have great weeks ahead making great choices!

It's time to get the boys ready and packed for a swimming day at the pool!

Week 31

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend, I sure did!


Both Friday and Saturday we spent the whole day at my sister's pool. The weather was sunny and warm without being oppressive, which was lovely! There was lots of food!! My sister's neighbor made me some birthday Boston cream cup cakes which were absolutely delicious and guilt free (dontcha love it when those two forces combine?). I'll need to get the recipe from her and share it with you.

Our boys spent the night with Aunties and my husband took me out to dinner and then dancing... sort of. We went to dinner at one of my favorite restraints, Bertucci's. I'd love to tell you I had water and salad, but alas... I had two rolls (their rolls and dipping oil are the best ever!!) and then for dinner (I hope you don't gain anything just listening to this fatty dish I had) I had the tortellini and chicken gratinatti. Oh my!!! I will say that I was at least pleased to learn that I can't eat as much of this as I could have at this time last year. I did feel guilty eating it - but then I said to myself, "Hey, it's your birthday. Enjoy yourself and then move on." And move on we did to dancing... sort of..

My husband had found this event advertised on the state web site. It was a 1940's night at the Memorial hall a few towns away to benefit a local church. There was a 16 piece band, a picture girl, and a 'cigarette' girl (she really sold gum and candy). We were moved to floor seating since it was my birthday which was very nice of the organizer! Before we got married (it will be 10 years in December) we took dance lessons at Arthur Murrays. I LOVED it! So fun and great exercise!!! But after the introductory sessions and then the 1st package the rates became ridiculously expensive so we had to stop. So there we were with our 10 year old dance lessons on the dance floor with all of these folks who clearly hadn't let their lessons get stale. "Excuse me. .. Sorry... Pardon us..." was uttered by my husband time and time again as we tried to navigate the dance floor like fish trying to swim against the current.  Yeah, after just one foxtrot I was feeling way too insecure to try to get out there again. :( But I still enjoyed listening to the band!! I love old music!!!

So what's the damage done after all of this birthday frivolity? 2 pounds.. ugh! 2 pound gain. I so want to say, oh well, it's a new week. But this is vacation week and we'll be going away for a few days. I'm hoping all of the walking around the amusement park will be a big help and I'm packing healthy snacks and breakfasts.

I said last week that I wanted to hit the 50 pound mark by the end of August. I just don't know if that's a reasonable goal. It would mean losing 12 pounds between now and then with vacation happening this week. Hmm...

I do need to give myself a little pat on the back for getting my exercise in last week. Even with all that was going on I did at least get my cardio in every other day! Also, let's hear it for non-scale-victories. I received many compliments from family who hadn't seen me in a few months as well as folks at church that I hadn't seen in a few weeks. I have to admit, it really is nice to know that the hard work is noticeable. I am posting a new picture as I've been slacking in this department. I may add a photo page to make it easier to see my progress.

So friends, how has your summer been going? Do you find it easier to stay on track during the summer or the other seasons? (I have to vote for the other seasons)

It's time to get ready to go shopping for our trip. Have a great week everyone!!

** Progress In Pictures page has been added!!

Week 29

I'm late.  I'm late for a very important post!  Actually, not so important.  Just my weekly update.

I'm still trying to recoup after my niece's wedding this past Saturday.  I headed up on Friday with my sister and sister-in-law in order to put the cake together and decorate it.  It took much longer than I had expected (an additional 4.5 hours once up there), but it came out ok and the bride and groom were happy with it, so that's all that matters.  This will be a post in and of itself I'm sure.
The wedding was wonderful!!  My niece was stunning and the groom very handsome.  I already made a 'wedding' post on my other blog.
I am thrilled to report that with all of the mindless eating that happened over the past week that the scale was merciful to me and I stayed the same.  I'm just itchin for a loss at this point, but not discouaraged.  I so need a revival of sorts to get me going!
Just came home from taking my boys to my sister's pool and I did a few laps so I feel good.  Need to get myself back into the 'exercise routine'.  One day at a time - that's my focus for this week.
Sorry - but this is going to be a short update at this point as I've got lost of unpacking to do. My sister-in-law and my new nephew's mom sent me home with 3 bags of clothes!!  They have been doing Weight Watchers and they're doing a terrific job!! They lose weight, pass their old clothes on to me and then I will do the same. It's a beautiful thing!!
Oh, and by the way, I went with dress #1!  I'll post a picture below.  A big "thank you" to my sister-in-law Stacey for lending me a set of jewlery that matched the dress perfectly!!
I hope you all have a wonderful week!  Let's all take it one day at a time and make good choices!

It's time to tackle the mountain in the living room and start dinner at the same time. (good thing we women can multi-task!)

Me and my handsome men.

Me and the happy couple.

Help Me Choose

So today I took my birthday boy (youngest son turned 5 today.. crazy!) off to go dress shopping after dropping son #1 off at summer enrichment.  This of course is just what every 5 year old boy wants to do.  I am a smart mother and therefore, I know how to make bribery work to my utmost advantage!  "Be a good boy shopping with me and we'll go get you one more little gift."  At 5 you see you can still get away with a 'little gift'.
I went to two stores, Kohl's and Dress Barn.  I found one dress at the first store and many at the second, but only purchased two.  Can I just say that I was actually able to fit into a size 16 in a few dresses!! (I was a size 22 back in January).  "Why Diane, what pray tell will you do with 3 dresses?" you may be asking.  I brought 3 home with me so I could ask my sister and husband, and now all of you which one you like best as call me silly, but I didn't feel as though my 5 year old son was the best judge as really, all he wanted me to do was get a dress already so he could get his 'little toy'.
(FYI - He did amazingly well and chose a Mickey Mouse giant coloring thing a majiggy from The Christmas Tree Shop which only set me back $3.99.  So worth it!!!)

Below you will see 3 dresses.  Please let me know which you think looks the best and will be most appropriate for an outdoor wedding in the middle of July (ceremony at 3 pm with reception to follow).

Here's the dress I got from Kohl's.  I wish the hubs got a better shot (on all of these).  This dress comes just below the knees and has bit of a flounce on the edges.  It's a light stretchy material.  This was hubby's favorite.  One thing I love about it.. it was only $23!!!

Love the retro feel of this one!! Saw it in the Dress Barn window and had to try it on.  The olive green color isn't my favorite, but the cut is fun - "Donna Reed" my husband said.  This was the big payout of the day at $59.99.

This was my $25 buy at DB.  Again, sort of an early 60 vibe to this one (anyone see the movie Shag? It's about a 60's dance, not 'Austin Powers').  It' has a little tulle ruffle on the bottom.  This was my sister's favorite.

Ok my friends, what do you think?  Paisleys, polka-dots or flowers?

I can only imagine how much better I'll look when I lose the 'Lilly Munster look'.  Gotta wash that grey right out of my hair and then get it cut. (so past due on my rewards)

It's time to hit the hey.  Have a good night!!

A Day In The Bite -

I've been telling you all for a few weeks now that I wanted to take on a challenge I saw on SparkPeople (where I go to track my food and get great support and motivation - and it's free!) about tracking my food in pictures.  Well thus far, it hasn't happened.  Until today!

Here are my nutritional ranges for each day ~
calories: 1220 - 1570
fat: 35 - 57
carbs: 165 - 239
protein: 60 - 129

And here's how today looked...


BREAKFAST:

Impossible Veggie and Egg pie that I made the other day. This is about a 1/8 serving.  I also had a Yorkshire pudding with this but was too piggy to stop eating it and put it down for the photo.  I will actually admit to you all that I was chomping away on it as I took this photo.  Pathetic!!  Yorkshire by the way for you non-English folk (other Europeans make it too) is made of egg, milk and flour with a bit of drippings from roast beef.  It's savory and soooo yummy! Total comfort food for me as my mum made it for us at least every other Sunday growning up.  I put the batter into muffin tins to speed the cooking so my serving size was 1/12th.   Later in the am I had this Yoplait yogurt.  First time I tried the red velvet cake flavor.  Quite good.
Veggie Pie - 111 calories, 12 carbs, 4 fat, 8 protein
Yorkshire Pudding - 91 calories, 13 carbs, 3 fat, 2 protein
Yogurt - 100 calories, 19 carbs, 0 fat, 5 protein

LUNCH

For lunch I stared with a tossed salad made of iceburg and romaine lettuce, baby spinich, shreded carrot, super sweet grape tomatoes and a sliced light cheese stick.  I topped it with Good Seasons salad dressing prepared light (more water, less oil).  Then I had a bowl of Progresso Light Italian Vegetable soup.  I love Progresso soups!  I had one bowl right after the salad and then about 2 hours later I finished the can.  Tastey and filling lunch for low fat & calories!

Salad: 141 calories, 12 carbs, 11 fat, 10 protein
Soup (whole can): 120 calories, 28 carbs, 0 fat, 4 protein


SNACK

I saw this Pria bay by PowerBar at the grocery store yesterday and decided to give it a go.  Only 110 calories so I thought, why not?  Well let me tell ya why not... Not so great.  It wasn't totally nasty, but it was sort of... 'sawdustlike'.  Yes it did provide a sweet fix, but I'll look elsewhere for that next time.  Side note - I did try a Luna bar for the first time yesterday and that was scrumptious!!

Pria: 110 calories, 17 carbs, 3 fat, 5 protein

DINNER

I was looking forward to dinner all day! (yes, I pretty much still live from one meal to the next)  This is baked cod with Brummel & Brown and crumbled Town House crackers on top.  I have tried to strip this dish down to the lowest totals possible, but sometimes you need to decide what's worth cutting and what isn't.  In this case I found I couldn't go low fat butter substitute and low fat/calorie crackers - so I went with the butter substitute.  Then you can also see that I have roasted veggies on my plate (you all know how I feel about those sweet little colorful bundles of vitamins!!).  This time I have carrots, summer squash and zucchini.  Lastly, a little mashed potatoes.

Fish - 289 calories, 9 carbs, 15 fat, 10 protein

Potatoes - 162 calories, 37 carbs, 1 fat, 4 protein

Veggies - 55 calories, 13 carbs, 0 fat, 1 protein

EVENING SNACKS

I would love to tell you I indulge in carrots sticks or berries for my evening snacks but nope.  I need me some real sweet and or salty snacks whilst watching the small screen.  I had two snacks tonight, but could only control myself long enough to photograph one.  These are Nonni's Biscotti and they're excellent!  Love them with a cup of tea.  I had one.  Then I also had one - 100 calorie Swiss Roll.  Total indulgence!!

Biscotti - 110 calories, 17 carbs,  4 fat,  2 protein

Swiss Roll - 100 calories, 33 carbs, 8 fat, 2 protein

Let's review.. something is missing... hmm... FRUIT!!  Most unlike me!  I normally have a minimum of 2 pieces of fruit a day.  Oh well...

Here are my totals for the day:

Calories: 1389  (within range)

Carbs: 209 (within range)

Fat: 48 (within range)

Protein: 54 (under range)

The one I typically have trouble getting enough of is Protein, as you see today.  The one I normally have trouble not going over is Carbs.  This isn't a surprise to me.  I'm a total carb girl!!

Well  there you are folks.  This is what it looks like to eat within my ranges (almost - sorry protein!).  It's plenty of food - plenty of variety - and I can still have treats!  Jillian Michaels of Biggest Loser fame suggests that your diet be 80/20 - 80% healthy stuff, 20% treats.  I was pretty close to this today so I'm happy.

It's time to hit the hey.  Good night blog buds!