{Live Well Wednesday: Week:7}

Wow! So I have been REALLY behind this week! I am currently designing 15 blogs, 3 logos, and 2 websites, plus I'm trying to get the laundry, grocery shopping, and housework done! Needless to say, my poor blog has been neglected!

BUT....my body has not! Nope, I still have time to exercise and I am SOOOOO excited to share that I FINALLY hit my first 10 pound loss!! That's 40 sticks of butter!! GROSS!!!



So I am glad that its no longer on my body, and I hope I never see it again!! I am now up to a three mile walk 4 times a week, and 2 days a week, I am doing a strength training video from Leslie Sansone. Every once in a while I throw in this ab workout too. Its really easy, so its great for a beginner.


Last week at bible study, all the girls were discussing my workout routine. Our awesome leader, Christy, suggested I get a balance ball to do my ab workout. Does anyone have one? Do you like it? I am thinking it will be less straining on my back and neck, so I might enjoy it more than laying on the floor!

I used to work at a spa here in Austin, the Lake Austin Spa and resort, and they let us take free classes! Well, I LOVED this one that we did a workout with the BOSU.

And let me tell you, a BOSU will KICK YOUR BEHIND!!! Its an awesome workout, but man, it was hard to walk out to my car after the class was done! I highly recommend taking a BOSU class if you ever get the opportunity! :)

So I hope I gave you all some good ideas on how to mix up your routine, get a little change in there every once in a while. It's really easy to get bored and give up! So hang in there!

And just as an added bonus for everyone reading, I calculated that if I loose 50 pounds by this time next year, that will be 200 sticks of butter!! YIKES!!!!!

{Fall upon us...}

Well ladies and gentleman....I do believe fall is upon us! The weather was cool and breezy this morning, the leaves are falling, and it's getting darker earlier. I can not wait for the weather during the day to get out of the 80's and 90's...then I will be VERY happy!!

So I just thought since it's Friday, I would take a break, and post some photos I took the other day when I was at the park with Lagan, just to show the beauty that is around us right now!!





Have a wonderful weekend! My mom's birthday is Sunday, so we will be having a BBQ!! (chicken and turkey sausage with salad...so I'm staying healthy!) See everyone one Monday!

{Live Well Wednesday: Week:6}

Week 6 baby! but not much change here on the home front, just working on it one day at a time! The jeans that were a little baggy last week actually are really baggy in the leg and butt, and I can put them on and zip them up and they don't squish my stomach! :)

I made a decision to not buy a ton of new clothes as I loose weight. I want it to be a gift to myself when I get to a good size that I go get all new clothes. Plus, who needs a wardrobe of sizes 22 to 10?


So the best thing that happened to me this week, is I did happen to buy a little sweater bolero thingy at Ross, in the JUNIORS DEPARTMENT!! I was very excited! I actually almost bought another one, but it was like $15.99, so I said, no way! lol I'm totally cheap like that.

So that was my personal victory this week....what was yours?

{Tackle it Tuesday}

So I know its a little late, but I thought I would finally post my Tackle it Tuesday! lol

My goal this week was to finish decorating Lagan's room!.And I finally did it with some help from the blogging world.
I will show total "After" photos as soon as she cleans up and I get some time to do it! lol But in the mean time, I wanted to share the last two projects that I did.

First is this Name banner. (and I finally hung the curtains I made like 7 months ago! lol) This is just a paper banner, but I love it to death, and Lagan helped me cut out the letters and punch the holes. She even chose which paper should go for which letter.



I got a tutorial on how to do it over at Mrs.B's blog. Click HERE to check it out.
It was soooo easy to do! Make sure you go give her some comment love!

The next project is something I have wanted to take on for quite some time now, the famous Ragamuffins. When Darlene posted a tutorial HERE, I ran out, got some fabric, and made one for Lagan in about 2 hours while watching TV. SOO easy, but so cute! I hung this one on Lay's bed. She love it, I love it! I think it rocks! Oh, and run over and give Darlene some comment love too!!!



So thank you blogger ladies for giving me the inspiration to finish Lagan's room! I cant wait to move on to another room now! :)
See you for the weigh in tomorrow! :)

{All work and no play...}

So I feel like my life has been all work and no play for a few weeks and I can feel it both in my body and my soul. So yesterday after church, Lagan and I went to the park to hang out together. It was really nice to just spend time with her, taking photos, looking at the leaves, which I am SHOCKED about, because the leaves NEVER change colors here in Austin! I think the hurricane brought in cooler weather and the Fall season!

So here are some photos from our day! Oh, and how cute does Lay look in this outfit? I made it for her many months ago and we finally got it on her!! I was so happy :)



she had no idea what to think about these huge colorful leaves!




Can you tell her "pose"? lol

{That's a Deal Thursday! COUPONING}

Hey Everyone! Welcome back to That's a deal Thursday!
Today I am going to take you through a tour of my coupon binder. I have had a couple of you write me and ask how to put one together, so I am hoping that this will help you organize your coupons to save some money!
(now, please forgive the picture quality, I made this EARLY in the morning when the sun wasn't up yet, so there was no light in the room! lol)

Oh..and P.S. I am a HUGE dork! lol just as a warning to anyone watching this....

{Live Well Wednesday: Week:5}

Wow, is it really week 5 already? I have been so busy that I even forget how far I have come. Now, I didn't get on a scale this week, so I have no idea if I lost any weight. But, I did put on a pair of jeans that just came out of the washer and dryer and would usually be really snug, but they fit just fine. In fact, the leg area was a little baggy!

So, we have chatted about exercise, we have touched on healthy alternative eating...what else is there? Well, for me, there is what I call PRESSING FORWARD.

"What in the heck is she talking about?"...Well, we have all been there. We all know what it's like to be doing so well, then you go to a friends house and you eat fried chicken and cherry pie for lunch. Then you figure, you blew it for the day, so you stop at Sonic for a burger at dinner. Then the next morning you think you blew all of yesterday, so you should just give up and have that bowl of cocoa crispies and forget all about your new life style!

WAIT!!!!!!!!!!!! Before you do that, remember all of the work you have put in to this. The morning's of sweaty workouts, the eating healthy for a month, the pounds shed on the scale, the feel of your newly washed jeans not touching the backs of your legs!
So what, you ate some chicken and a burger! Now, you will workout and then eat your eggbeaters and fruit and whole grain toast and shut up about quitting!

YOU ARE NOT A QUITTER!

If you stumble, then get back up and try again. Because you WILL stumble. But that's the thing. This is NOT a diet!


It truly is a lifestyle change. If you want some fried chicken, then have A PIECE, not the whole bucket. Then do 20 extra crunches in the morning, or do a 2 mile walk instead of one. Believe me, you will feel better about yourself that you overcame that road hump, and kept moving on. You will feel stronger! And your body will thank you!

Also, remember for every minute you walk, you add two minutes of life expectancy!

{Hurricane Ike}

So Ike has come and gone, and Texas will never be the same. The scary thing about this is that my sister, BIL, and daughter were just in Galveston a few weeks ago, in the very place that now sits as a pile of rubble and wood. It brings tears to my eyes to see. This is the place we used to vacation as kids, even now as adults. Our favorite restaurants, boutiques, and hotels...Gone.

Houston is flooded, people are dead, and there is nothing but devastation all around us. There is breaks on the TV from the news every few minutes, updating us on the status of the Search and Rescue.

Thank you Lord that we were spared. It did not hit Austin as they predicted. We got lots of wind, but that's about it. No severe damage! I could not be more thankful. Lagan's school has been used as a shelter to those who have come from the coast. They expect people to be there for the next few weeks.
I feel so helpless. I wish there was more I could do to help.

I ask for everyone to pray for these people. They have nothing to go home to. Their hopes and dreams are washed away in a massive flood...a flood that created this:

{Hurricane, Hurricane, go away!}

Wow, I thought Tina had problems with Ike! Now its me!! (ok, that was wrong, I'm sorry! lol)

Hurricane Ike is said to hit tonight and is coming straight for us! Its a little scary. Lagan gets out of school early today so that no one is out picking up their kids when all the people from the coast are coming. So please pray for our family and everyone here in Texas that we are all ok!




Also, one of my readers is giving an AWESOME deal!!
GingerLouise Clothing is offering 20% your order from her Etsy store until Sunday to all of my readers!! Isn't that awesome?
All you have to to is visit her store: www.gingerlouiseclothing.etsy.com
and convo her mentioning my blog to get your discount!!

And let me tell you, she has some AMAZING stuff! And I am super picky about my custom mades for my daughter because I always say "I could make that!" lol But her fabrics and styles are just lovely! (Very Matilda Jane and Gen Marie style!) And SUPER low prices!! So go snag some swag for your princess! Thank you so much Laura!!!! (Oh, and here is a link to her blog also, http://www.gingerlouiseclothing.blogspot.com/)

So that's about it for today! I might be gone for a few days because of this storm, but keep us all in your prayers that everything is OK and back to normal by Monday!
Love you guys!!

{That's a Deal Thursday!}

Oh My Goodness, I am sooooooooo excited to announce, my very own BLOG THEME DAY or "meme". It called "That's a deal Thursday"!

So in the spirit of my new meme, I would love for you to post a comment on this post ANY TIME about your deals. It can be an old post, a new post, it doesn't even have to be on Thursday, just share your deals.
I will be adding a link to share this on the sidebar >>>>>>>

Deals can be on shopping for anything! Clothes, groceries, house stuff, Goodwill, CVS, you name it! Just find a deal, blog about it, and link it up here!

My first "That's a deal Thursday" is my latest trip to the grocery store. I wasn't going to post a breakdown, but someone told me I should, so I will! The final tally was $66.66 worth of groceries for $13.65 at walmart, and $3.98 worth of stuff at CVS for FREE!
Here are my receipts from both trips!
(the best deal was going to CVS and getting chex mix. It is normally $1.99/bag, but it was on sale this week for $1.00. I printed two of these $1.00 off coupons, and got them for free with my card!)

and here is everything I bought...

(I got that catfood back there for $.14 cents per bag by going here:
http://www.giveabowl.com/Consumer/brands/brandSelector.html?LI=1)

If you want to learn more about shopping with coupons, and getting great deals, go to this chicks site, she is AMAZING!!

Ok, well, I guess that's it for today! I hope you all have a wonderful afternoon, and we will see you tomorrow :)
http://www.dealseekingmom.com/

{Live Well Wednesday: Week:4}

THE ONE MONTH MARK!!!! WHOO HOO!!
Ok guys, I am so excited about this one month mark. You know they say that if you do a new routine for 21 days that it becomes a habit, well, I am totally there. Eating healthy isn't a challenge anymore and when I get home from dropping off Lagan at school, I don't even hesitate to do my workout. I feel great!

Here is how I know that my body is noticing some difference...
--I don't get winded going up and down the stairs
--My pee is clear (I know that's a little TMI, but I'm drinking plenty of water and my body notices. Which is huge for me since I get like 12 UTI's a year, so this is a huge step!)
--I can do 50 crunches before my abs start to shake like an Earthquake!
--I am sleeping better.

AND.............

I have lost 6 pounds!!

And nothing is coming back! I cant wait until next month, maybe I will be down 12 pounds by then!!

So, I know a lot of you have sent me questions about this routine because you want to follow along with me. Last week, we chatted about working out. This week, I want to chat about food!

Food used to be my best friend. It was my comfort when I was feeling down. My reward for when I did something good. It was always there. PLUS, being a trained french chef (which is like the worst food for you in the world) I LOVE to cook! But I also know a lot about food and what is good and bad for me. So, I took those tools and applied them to my life.

So here is a little sample of my daily meals:


Breakfast:
I USED to have bacon or sausage, cereal (with lots of sugar), 2 or 3 eggs and maybe a bagel or toast.
Some mornings I would even have sweet rolls (like the entire 10 pack) or french toast with butter, syrup and powdered sugar.

NOW I have scrambled egg whites (you can get them at the store in a container, they are really good with bell pepper in them!) with a little fat free or low fat cheese on top. A slice of turkey bacon or turkey sausage, and a fruit. Sometimes I even throw in a whole grain English muffin or whole grain toast with natural peanut butter for extra protein.


For Lunch, I USED to eat out ALL the time! Fast food almost every day. NOW I stay home and make a pita pizza, love that, or a sandwich. (I love the new deep fried turkey from butter ball. Its 98% fat free and low in cal's. But has tons of flavor! Really good!)
I also eat fruit, raw veggies, and cheese at this meal too.
If you put your sandwich in a panini maker or in the George Foreman gill, its even better!!


And then for dinner, I USED to eat chicken fried steak, fried fish, fried chicken. Basically if it was battered and deep fried, I was all over it! I now bake almost everything or use my crock pot. I use my recipes over at The Gourmet Momma because I know whats in them and I know the nutritional information of them.

So the weight is coming off slowly but surly and I don't think it will come back! :) Thanks to everyone for continuing to support me!! I can't wait to check in next week!

{Tackle it Tuesday}

Hey Everyone! Tuesday already? I want it to be Wednesday so I can show you my newest weigh in!! I'm so excited :)

Today's Tackle it Tuesday is my jewelry collection. I have a TON of jewelry as one might expect of a jewelry designer! hehe But I have had it all shoved together in shoe boxes for the longest time, all tangled up and gross! I even forgot that I owned some things.



So while I was washing my sheets I decided to lay it all out on the bed so I could see what I had, what I wanted, what I didn't want, what to give to Lagan or my sister, etc.

...It took up the ENTIRE bed!...




Then, I used this huge memo cork board that I bought at Goodwill for $3.00 and some thumb tacks I got at walmart for $1.99 and got to work. I hung up all my chunky jewelry that couldn't be folded up on to here.



Once it was full, I moved onto this organizer that I got from Target for $2.50 in those front bins that have stuff for $1-2.50.
I put all my other necklaces in here (its full now too!)



I also put my bracelets in these baskets that were in the kitchen before, you might remember them from this T.i.T.(that sounded REALLY bad!!)
And my earrings are in the little canisters, also from Target. They were in the $1.00 bin, but they had a 75% off sale to clear them out, so they were only $0.25 each. I got 4 for $1.00! Such a deal!
I should have gone back and bought more....oh well!
(I also have my necklaces out that are very delicate like the one on the bust that my mom got for me. She got it on an Indian Reservation in Arizona! I L-O-V-E it!)



So that concludes today's tackle it Tuesday! I cant wait to see you tomorrow for the 1 month mark in Live well Wednesday!

{Its feeling like Fall project}

** My project was featured today over at One Pretty Thing! Check it out :)

Ok, so that title is really lame, but I don't care because....well, I'm lame! :) But you love me anyway and that's what counts, right?

I told you I would have a project for you on Monday, so here it is! Yay! I'm actually on time for once!!

So anyway, I thought I would share a little "how-to" on a fall wreath that I did the other day. Its really cute, and perfect for all year long, and you can use any combination of flowers that you would like.

Here is what you will need to get started:

1 grapevine wreath
faux floral stems (as many as you would like)
faux bird, birds nest, and eggs
hot glue gun with plenty of glue
floral wire

Here is how I made it:
I started with three floral stems. One is a large hydrangea, one is made of these tiny little flowers that almost feel rubbery, and one is like mossy.


I then picked off the flowers from the stems. These should just pop off from the stem very easily.




Then I hot glued them on in random places on the front AND the back. This is very important because it makes it look more natural to have some of the moss and flowers peaking out from behind the wreath.

(I forgot to take a photo of this, I'm so sorry.) So, then I hot glued the little bird into the nest along with a few eggs, and I used floral wire to hold it on.

Once its all done, this is what it should look like:


Here are a few detail photos of the different areas and clusters of flowers.






This was really easy, and only took me about 10 minutes.
Here is a breakdown of the cost:
( I bought everything at Hobby Lobby)

Grapevine wreath $3.99 plus 40% off coupon= $2.39
Faux Hydrangea $2.99, on sale 50% off= $1.50
Faux moss floral $2.99 on sale 50% off= $1.50
Faux little flowers $2.99 on sale 50% off= $1.50
Little birds $1.99 (4 pack)= $0.50 for one
Bird nests $1.57 (2 pack)= $0.79 for one
birds eggs $0.99 (12 pack)= $0.25 for three
I already had floral wire and hot glue

Project Total: $8.43
($11.44 if you count the entire price of the nests, birds, and eggs)
($17.51 if nothing is on sale and no coupon)

If you decide to make a similar wreath, then blog about it and send me the link!! :) I would love to see and share your creations!