What's Going On

So if you haven't heard yet, I'm pregnant.

I got to my goal of 130 and went forward with the "process." It happened on the first try and guess what symptoms I have? Hunger and lots of it! During this time, I've had two family reunions where there was plentiful food. I was hungry and I ate it.

I stepped on the scale when I got back from California and guess what! I'm back to my old weight of 140 pounds!!!! ARRRRRRRRRRRRRGH!

In my mind, I want to immediately start dieting. Can't! I <------ am prego! But I can eat healthier. Well I am still starving. So I still have to eat a lot of it. Oh well. And who knows how much of it is baby. I've heard of women getting bigger earlier in later pregnancies. I SWEAR!

One thing I've been way bad in is that I stopped working out. I've been working on The Ribbon Retreat Blog (lots of fun stuff if you haven't checked it out recently!) so working out has gone to the side. But I know I need to start it up again and work out to my prenatal dvds! So my goal is for next monday to start back up my routine. I know I won't lose weight, but this is so I can lose weight faster when this baby comes. I know I will be anxious to! And I hope I don't gain as much. I had such a fat face last time. So here's me crossing my fingers!

Crafts

I am now the blog author for The Ribbon Retreat. All of my crafts will be going on there, so if you want to see what I'm up to, check it out. :)

I hope every one is doing well in all your goals!

Things are good with me. I can be better with everything, but I'm doing okay. I hurt my knee so I couldn't work out much last week. I also can be tons better with trying to be more like Jesus. Tomorrow is Sunday which is always awesome. It will be a great start to a new week!

Oh and speaking of new weeks, I have a massage on Monday! I got it for my birthday. Super excited! :)

This and That

On Saturday I was able to go and hear Sheri Dew speak to our stake. It was pretty cool. It was an interesting experience that's for sure. It made me miss going to Relief Society. Funny how much I wanted to go and now that I am totally loving my calling, I don't care as much. BUT I do miss the spiritual enrichment that only Relief Society can provide.

One of the things I got out of Sheri Dew's talk was the same thing I get out of everything. To be a better person and a better disciple of Christ. To view this life with bigger glasses and look towards the eternal view, rather than just tomorrow. She even mentioned how technology is so bad because it takes us away from getting closer to Father in Heaven, and how I agree with that! See, instead of reading my scriptures, I am blogging! haha. I need to come up with a saying about an eternal perspective and put it up in my house. Anyone have any suggestions???

I haven't worked out in over a week! I have been so busy with my dad being here, and then I am working for my sister in law getting her website's blog started and starting to advertise on craft blogs. Emails take forever!!! It will be nice once it's all set up and I can focus on just the blog. I am sewing/crafting, using products from theribbonretreat.com and then posting about my experience as a novice extraordinaire. <-- I had to spell check that word. I think as we get older we forget how to sound things out. :)

I have done two posts over there so you can check them out! ribbonfairy.com. We haven't got the look of it completely set up yet, but once it is set up and I have a few more posts on there, we'll go live. I need to be posting a ton lately, and I just don't have time. It sucks. Maybe, I will magically get some time. :) I have a super long list of stuff I want to do, so it will be fun.

Anyways, back to the working out. I am at about 131/132 pounds right now. I'm happy about it, but my energy level is WAY down. I know it's because I haven't been working out. So for energy sake, I am going to work out again tomorrow and do it everyday. If I need to, I can work extra at night. Who needs sleep? (okay I do, but what's a girl to do?) I am going to be shopping in the next week or so for a new wardrobe for my birthday. I am not spending anything on decorations, and just on myself. Yay! I really need and deserve this I think. Wish me luck on being a size 6! :)

So that's a little update on where I am at right now. All three, physically, spiritually, and mentally (crafts). How are your goals coming along?

Why I Shouldn't Craft During Awake Times

Because I may spill a butt load of paint and then instead of easily cleaning it, I have to rush to get towels while my one-year-old plays in the paint. I didn't get pictures, but there were little green footprints across the kitchen floor and hand prints on the oven.

My shirt was a vacation shirt from a sisters cruise three years ago, and my pants were my favorite sweats. Ryan's pajamas got paint all over them too. I am SO bummed I was an idiot, but I learned to not use paint while Ryan is awake, just in case something goes bad. I am laughing about it now, don't worry, and wishing I got better pictures. But this will have to do. Hopefully my warning can help other trying to be ambitious mamas.

New Desk

I really needed to get that picture of those delicious looking brownies off the front page! People viewing the blog for the first time are probably wondering if this really IS a fitness blog. Don't fret, it really is and those weren't my brownies so I didn't get any. :)

The title is completely obvious. I bought a desk. A funny thing happened the other day. You know how I normally take our bills and put them on the kitchen counter? And how they go from the kitchen counter into a bag or a laundry bin full of crap to take upstairs? And then stuff gets lost and forgotten? Yeah? Well I was cleaning through one of the laundry bins full of crap and going through the unimportant mail that we open, shred, and throw away. Well I opened one from Wachovia that had a check for $250 freaking dollars!!! Yes $250! I couldn't believe it. It was a refund from when we refinanced our car through a new bank. I don't know how we missed that money. We even went through our budget that month. Suffice to say, I was VERY excited about this discovery.

Now I immediately started thinking about the possibilities for this money. Paying off some debt, fixing something in the car, new pants (still desperately needed!) and then I got the idea of a desk. Yes, a desk with a filing cabinet to put all my bills. How wonderful to be more organized right?

I found this cute one after a few days of searching KSL classifieds and a few furniture stores. I found it at WalMart for $130, pretty sweet! As soon as I saw it I was in love. It had the filing cabinet, but wasn't a monster and it fits perfectly where it needs to.

Can you tell I'm still working on the organizing part?

Many thanks to my wonderful hubby who put it together! It took THREE hours! It also didn't have the holes it needed so he had to drill some.

And if you were wondering... I want to get a floating shelf above it for pictures and desk stuff since it doesn't have a hutch, and then I want to do these cute flowers (matching my colors of course) from Design Dazzle. I am so ambitious huh? Someday it will all be up and cute. :) I am almost done with Ryan's room and will post pictures by next week. Super excited about that!

So Hungry!

I've been working out harder to get rid of these 3 pounds quicker, but I find I am so much more hungry. I don't buy sweets any more but I am craving them like crazy! Ah!

Don't those brownies look so good? I bet they are. Instead I am having some crackers. Yes, it's 10:30 pm, but what do you do? I have to snack. Oy, maybe I won't be losing these last few pounds after all.

Quilting

I have never quilted. I am not much of a sewer, although I would love to be, and I follow a ton of craft blogs and don't have much to show for it.

Right now on Obsessively Stitching, she is doing a quilting week and starting from the very beginning. I am so excited!!! This is one I am going to do!

http://obsessivelystitching.blogspot.com/2010/04/1st-quilt-ever-basic-quiltmaking.html

I have a ton of jeans that I will never be able to fit into that I want to make into a quilt. My sister-in-law just added a ton of fabric to her website, and I think taking some of that fabric and adding it to the jeans will make a fabulous quilt. Now I actually have somewhere to start and am so excited!

Great News!!

When I got on the scale today it was 133!! I have been waiting for the scale to stay below 135, since my weight fluctuates between 2-3 pounds everyday, and it has stayed below 135 for 5 days now! Yay!!!

At night I am at my heaviest and last night I was 136, which is an awesome sign.

So I am going to officially say that I am 133 and I've lost 7 pounds so far! Only 3 more pounds to go and hopefully I can fit into a pair of 6's!

Wahoo!

Spiritual Sunday

This is my grandma's favorite picture of Gethsemane.
I am so glad I was able to find it to post here.

I had the opportunity to speak in church today. I don't necessarily love to, but I can whip up a 10 minute talk and do fairly well, so it's not that big of a deal. But I haven't talked in so long, I was SO nervous! Luckily once I go up there my fears were put aside and I just tried to listen to the spirit so I could speak to the congregations heart's.

I was asked to speak on Gethsemane and Jared was asked to speak on the resurrection. There was one other speaker who went before us, and so Jared had about 5 minutes to speak. He was perfectly content with that! :) I wrote down my talk so I am going to put it on here for record keeping sake, more for me than any one else, but you're free to read it.

"Bro. Hokanson called many times to get a hold of us. Once he did, he gave us the two topics and let us decide who does what. He gave us Gethsemane and the resurrection. Both of those are seemingly difficult topics to me. They both represent such HUGE events in the world and the plan. It seemed like either one I chose, it didn't matter because it was going to be difficult. When I was pondering which one to do, I realized I don't know too much about Gethsemane. I have heard it over and over from teachers and in conference, but never actually studied it. That was when I decided to choose that topic. Jared seemed happy to be able to cover the resurrection.

After I made my decision, I went straight to the source and read about Gethsemane in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Learning that John doesn't go over it in the same way. My favorite one was Mark so I am going to read that one to you. Starting with the Joseph Smith Translation and ending in Mark.READ: MARK. After I had read this,I thought, that was it? One of the biggest events in the plan and it is covered in only a few verses? Not only that, but it isn't extremely insightful about WHAT happened in Gethsemane . That is when I learned how important it is to study not only these verses, but the topic. And the topic isn't necessarily Gethsemane, but the Atonement. When I think of Gethsemane, I feel sad thinking about the pure agony that Christ went through. But when I think of the Atonement, I feel pure joy. My mind doesn't immediately go to the pain, but the sacrifice and the gift of being able to return home that we have all been given.

In John 16:32-33 it says:__. In an address to CES educators, Elder Neal A. Maxwell said, read paper. (It basically says how sad the apostles were for what was to come with Christ's suffering and death. Elder Maxwell says that it should bring peace, knowing that the plan was to be fulfilled and we can make it back to our Heavenly Father through the atonement. I couldn't find the talk online, but I love Elder Maxwell and his words are so powerful.)

We should rejoice that good wins over evil. I realized while reading the passages of Gethsemane that Satan was ever present. While I was reading it, I thought, how can these apostles fall asleep during such an important time. I worked graveyards and I know what it is to be tired, but this wasn't watching misbehaving teenagers like I did, but being there for Christ. It is unfathomable to me. After reading the verses for the 4^th or 5^th time, I realized the part where Christ says, Watch and pray that ye not enter into temptation. Christ warns them of the temptation and they still succumb to it in a way. It proves how powerful Satan is and can be. What happened had to happen so that the plan could be fulfilled, and I am so glad that Satan was defeated and a way was made for me and you to be able to return to Father in Heaven.

I feel like as important we all know the Atonement was, it can be taken for granted. I'm not saying in the ways of sin now and repent later and all is good. But taking advantage of the fact that Christ is the Son of God, of course he could do it. I admit that I fell into the thinking of, yes it was painful and agonizing beyond all imagination, but there was never no doubt in my mind that it wouldn't be fulfilled.

In Elder Richard G. Scott's talk last week, he gave some great insights to what it was really like in the garden for Christ. During his talk, I actually had the thought of, who wouldn't have done this sacrifice? I would go through anything and death so the world could have the choice to be saved. But I knew that there is so much more to it than that. Willingness isn't enough alone. Remember Satan clearly was present and if he can make apostles disobey, who knows what would happen. It was right when I had this thought that this part of his talk came up. He says that Christ faced three challenges.

1: 'First, an enormous sense of responsibility, for He realized that except it be done perfectly, not one of His Father’s children could return to Him. They would be forever banished from His presence since there would be no way to repent for broken laws and no unclean thing can exist in the presence of God. His Father’s plan would have failed, and each spirit child would have been under the eternal control and torment of Satan.'

It had to be done perfectly. Knowing this, I probably would not volunteer. I know that I would fail and we would all be forever banished from his presence. Christ knew this. Even being the son of God, it was a heavy responsibility for him to carry. This part makes me appreciate his careful sacrifice even more.

2: 'Second, in His absolutely pure mind and heart, He had to personally feel the consequences of all that mankind would ever encounter, even the most depraved, despicable sins.'

Elder Scott says his mind and heart were absolutely pure. With this in mind, I picture my child, my son, not experiencing, but just watching anything horrific in nature and it tears my heart up. I can only imagine Christ's pure heart having to experience not only one instance, but every single awful sin in existence. Christ's pure heart is something I never realized and am thankful to have learned.

3: 'Third, He had to endure the vicious attack of Satan’s hordes while physically and emotionally pressed to the limit. Then, for reasons we do not fully know, while at the extremity of His capacity, at the time the Savior most needed succor, His Father allowed Him to shoulder the onerous responsibility with only His own strength and capacity.'

I have already mentioned the attacks from Satan, but Elder Scott affirms that Christ received them completely on his own. Elder Scott says, “I try to imagine what an intensely poignant moment it must have been for our Father in Heaven when the Savior cried out from the cross, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” I don’t believe Father in Heaven forsook His Son on the cross. I do believe the cry was motivated when that Son felt removed the sustaining support He had always enjoyed from His Father. His Father recognized that the Savior needed to accomplish the Atonement totally and completely on His own, without external support. The Father did not abandon His Son. He made it possible for His perfect Son to win the eternal fruits of the Atonement. ”

He goes on to say, “None of us can ever adequately appreciate in mortality the full beneficial consequences of the Atonement. ”

I feel the truth of that statement with all my heart. There is no way for us to understand it without really going through it, and that isn't even close to possible. Now that doesn't mean we shouldn't TRY with all our hearts to understand it. Elder Scott says:

My reverence and gratitude for the Atonement of the Holy One of Israel, the Prince of Peace and our Redeemer, continually expand as I strive to understand more about it. It is vital that we each learn what we can about it. The Atonement is that essential ingredient of our Father in Heaven’s plan of happiness without which that plan could not have been activated. Your understanding of the Atonement and the insight it provides for your life will greatly enhance your productive use of all of the knowledge, experience, and skills you acquire in mortal life. There is an imperative need for each of us to strengthen our understanding of the significance of the Atonement of Jesus Christ so that it will become an unshakable foundation upon which to build our lives. As the world becomes more devoid of foundational standards and as honor, virtue, and purity are increasingly cast aside in the pursuit of appetite, our understanding of and faith in the Atonement of Jesus Christ will provide strength and capacity needed for a successful life. It will also bring confidence in times of trial and peace in moments of turmoil.

I guess my talk today wasn't so much on Gethsemane as much as it was reiterating that it is something that can't be covered in 12 minutes. Our understanding of this sacrifice is every growing as we study through personal scripture study and prayer and pondering. This is the best way to from Elder Scott's talk, “appreciate the incomparable, eternal, infinite consequences of Jesus Christ's perfect fulfillment of His divinely appointed calling as our Savior and redeemer.”

My understanding has grown on this topic, and I am grateful for being asked to speak today. I know that Christ lives. I know that he suffered for each and every one of us. I know that I can repent of my mistakes and be forgiven because of his sacrifice. I am so grateful for the fullness of gospel in the latter days, that we might know more about the atonement and the plan and our purpose on this earth. I love my heavenly father and my brother Jesus Christ. I know that they love all of us so deeply. I hope that I can be a better disciple of Christ and further my understanding each and every day. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen."

On another note, I have a new teaching companion, and she is so cute! I am so glad to be teaching with her. She also happens to be one of the people I should be visit teaching, so that makes me easier for me to know her. I have some weird anxieties with calling people I don't know. It's crazy, so it was nice to be able to meet her and see what a wonderful person she is. I'm way excited! I love my calling now. The kids are so good most of the time and probably know more than me. But it's fun being their teacher and I hope I am a good one to them.

Mushbelly

After my last post, I just wanted to clarify something else I have learned.

Something I have learned from Lindsay's DVD's is that you need to be flexing your core at all times. This was VERY difficult to do at first. It probably took me a good 4 weeks before I could even pretend to do it all the time. I am getting better and better at it, but still have a hard time doing it when I am sitting down.

I am posting some pictures of me not flexing and what it looks like when I do a sit up and when I am sitting down. It is not pretty, but it's me. So as awesome as my last post was with my pictures, this is what it is like most of the time. Because honestly, flexing that hard ALL the time would kill me.

So this post is for those of you who might say, "oh I could never look like that!" Because you can! It's not just losing the weight, but training your body to hold it self better, and getting some amazing Spanx (or the Target knock off brand, which I will be purchasing for my birthday! What mushbelly???:)

Laying down about to do a sit up - my view. Lovely isn't it?

So jiggly. I took all these pics myself, so sorry
you can't see the whole body.

Doing the sit up. It actually looks much more gross when I am
not concentrating on taking a picture and doing a good sit up.

This is me not flexing. I am not letting it out completely
(like in my first picture from May 09).
Since I have been working out,
it actually feels weird to let it out completely.
Another awesome side effect!

Me flexing a bit so you can get an idea of how much changes.

My favorite picture! Me sitting down!!
I am even trying to flex here,
but it's so hard with the extra skin. There is so much skin,
my body can't pull it in enough,
especially not enough to look good,
so I don't bother for the most part.

I wanted to post these pictures so you readers don't get discouraged. When I see pictures of people losing weight, sometimes it inspires me and other times it makes me depressed, like why can't I do it. It's just a self control thing. You can do it. You just have to decide to do it yourself.

Now as you are taking your journey, it might not be pretty, as you can see above, but I have so many other things going good, that I just keep trucking. Pretty soon, I'll learn how to flex all the time and won't need my Spanx, okay, let's make that a maybe. :) Make sure you do the same! Because we can ALL do it!

New Pictures!

I am really excited with how my body is turning out. I still have tons of skin, but what can you do? I am liking the top of my abs, but really need my arms and legs to follow suit. I am still in a size 8, and really wanted to be a size 6 before getting pregnant again. I don't know if that's going to happen.

I am still at 135. It's crazy to have lost 5 pounds in the first 4 weeks, and then still not lose more. But it's okay. Just from the pictures, I am looking like I lost it. I just wish I would now! Off my butt and thighs please!

I am working out a bit different now. I do my DVD's every other day that includes toning and then take a day off so my muscles can rest. I am not really sure what to do for cardio on the off days. Moms Into Fitness has some stroller exercises that I think I might buy. So in the morning of my off days, we'll get up, eat breakfast, and then go for a walk doing these exercises. I hope it works!

I am actually excited to not do videos everyday. I think I will be able to do some more fun stuff on my off days while Ryan is sleeping. Things seem to be working out pretty well with not being on the internet. It is SO hard not commenting on people's stuff, but I have to do what I have to do. Anyway, on to what this blog is all about! PICTURES!

May 2009 (about 3 months after baby)
My shirt is on because I think I was flexing a bit more than
the one with my shirt off. It makes it more realistic.

Feb 2010 (3 weeks into working out)

March 8, 2010 (6 weeks working out)
This pic was also taken at night when I am my heaviest.
So it's not entirely accurate I think.

April 7, 2010 (10 weeks working out)
About two weeks of every other day working out.

Here is another picture of my side view. My arms are up
and it kind of makes me abs do some cool stuff!


Feb 2010

March 2010

April 2010

March 2010

April 2010

Jared wasn't around when I wanted pictures, so I took some myself. The full body ones looked horrible! I looked like I had small head syndrome. So I did some in the mirror. This one was fun.

I found that muscle last month and was SO excited! It's so cool to see my body transforming. I just wish that I could get my skin to change as fast! Oh and take away the stretch marks too, please!

Spiritual Sunday

This weekend was a great weekend for me. General Conference alone, makes for an amazing weekend, but I had some great insights that I'd like to share.

One of my biggest trials is "not having enough time." I always ask other mommas how they do it. I have always known what my problem was, but made excuses or said how much I needed it. Here it goes: I am addicted to the internet. Whenever I have a spare moment, I HAVE to check my email or Facebook or blogs. When I run out of stuff with those, I am trying to think of something else to do. Watch shows, search for stuff, shop, go on Babycenter.com, etc. These are all such time wasters.

I made excuses saying that if I check it through out the day, then I don't spend much time on it at each sitting. I have said how much I NEED Facebook to help me interact with the outside world being a stay-at-home-mom. I still feel these excuses swimming around in my head. I guess that's when I realized that I am addicted. I have the hardest time saying no and having a butt load of excuses at my back, kind of spells out that I am.

There was a talk today on addiction. Not necessarily addiction alone, but on something else. What I gleamed from this talk was that learning self control is the only way to be free. When I think about it, I do feel trapped by my addiction. There are so many character and spirit building activities that I want to do, but never have the time for.

Another talk pointed out how we all have trials. Silly me, I thought, I don't really have that bad of trials. Then I realized that the person I am is so far away from the person I want to be. Big trials are easy to get over and they are easy to get closer to Heavenly Father, because you turn directly to Him. I can see how big trials are given by Him, because they push us harder towards who we need to become. Of course, it doesn't have to be that way, but it's true. The easier our lives go, the more we forget about how dependent we are on Heavenly Father. We become so selfish and independent, some times forgetting our purpose and falling from the path.

In college, I went through some pretty hard times. That was when I was closest to my Heavenly Father. I knew He knew me and loved me. I studied the scriptures so hard. I was so thirsty for knowledge of the plan and how I could better myself. That is the person I want to be again. But I will never get there if I don't acknowledge my addiction and try to get through it. Oy, what an addiction to have!

We use the internet everyday. I will never be able to get away from it fully. Cutting off our internet just isn't plausible, especially since I use it for work every night. One thing I've thought of is giving myself a time limit to spend a day. Once I hit it, I can't go back on the computer. Or I could just use the computer at night after Ryan goes to bed and after I am done with work. I think I might try both for a week and see what works best for me. Man, even thinking about it is giving my stomach knots. But I know it will be good. I tried it a little yesterday and I cleaned the whole house. It felt so good to get some stuff done. Thank goodness for Easter and conference weekend because Facebook and my blog list were so dead! :)

So here I am, telling the full truth, completely embarrassed by it, but acknowledging the necessity of it. I want to be better. I want to be closer to a person that my Father in Heaven would be proud of. I know that I am not alone in this and that I can turn to Him. Luckily, that is the best part. I am so grateful for the knowledge I have and that I don't have to go through this alone. I am so thankful for Christ and everything He has done for me.

In conference, the choir sang, "He is Risen!" What a beautiful song! Here are the words:

He is risen! He is risen!
Tell it out with joyful voice
He has burst his three days prison
Let the whole wide earth rejoice
Death is conquered, man is free
Christ has won the victory

Come with high and holy hymning
Chant our Lord's triumphant lay
Not one darksome cloud is dimming
Yonder glorious morning ray
Breaking o'er the purple east
Symbol of our Easter feast

He is risen! He is risen!
He hath opened heaven's gate
We are free from sin's dark prison
Risen to a holier state
And a brighter Easter beam
On our longing eyes shall stream

I know Christ came to this Earth. He lived and died so that I might be able to live to the fullest measure of my creation. I can feel His love for me in so many places. He knows me and has given me so many tools to use to become more like Him. I am so grateful for the church I am in and the knowledge I have. I know that there isn't an end at death. I know that families are forever. How grateful I am for that! I am so grateful for temples on this earth so I can be sealed with my husband and our posterity with us. I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord's church on Earth. The prophet and apostles are His mouth piece, giving revelation in our day. I want to tell everyone out in the world that Christ has risen! He lives and loves us. My heart is full of joy. I know if we seek Him daily, we will be happy, experiencing true joy. This is my testimony.

I Did It!

So I went from feeling blah and taking that nap, to feeling somewhat better and forcing myself to exercise, feeling a TON better, and then making dinner and cleaning the whole living room/kitchen in an hour so my hubby thought I had been busy all day! Haha! I love it!

In other good news, Lindsay Brin is having a giveaway on her blog for her DVDs. All you had to do was go to Amazon.com and write in a review and then email them about it. I really hope I win! I already have a ton of DVDs, but I would love the prenatal ones since we are looking to TTC (try and conceive) soon. If I don't end up winning, I will buy them anyway. I love her DVDS!

I am going to post new pics this week or weekend. I am pretty excited! I don't know how different I look, but I can feel my muscles forming under my skin. It's pretty cool! I am going to try and get a shot of it for you guys.

Anyway, working out is awesome! I love the energy it gives me. It makes life SO much better. I'm so glad I made the decision to do it today so I could be reminded of it. I hope everyone else is doing well too!

Blah

I've been feeling blahish since Sunday. I just want to sleep all day. Do you ever have days like that?

I am debating on whether to sleep or exercise during Ryan's first nap. I have tentatively decided to exercise. Aunt Flo came to visit on Sunday so I have been using her as an excuse to sleep and be lazy the past few days. Now that I'm even writing about it, I may be tentatively deciding to take a nap. It's awful. I do miss working out. I wish I could work out when Ryan is awake. Blah, blah, blah.

I slept for about 7 hours last night. That is actually pretty good! I shouldn't be so tired. For those of you who are amazing with their time, how do you get out of ruts like this, or not even allow yourself to get in them? I just need some positive thinking. :)

Fun Activities for Toddler

Most days I feel like a horrible mother. I see all these posts or Facebook statuses about all the fun things my friends are doing with their kids, and I feel horrible. But sadly, I can't think of anything to do. Ryan just spends most of his time exploring and playing then eating. So today I said to myself, enough is enough!

I got online and looked up activities for a one-year-old and found quite a few. My goal is to do one a day, at least, and hopefully we can both enjoy them. I want to be a good mom, and I want Ryan to be doing things that help him develop well. He is such a cutie. I love him so much!

Here are the activities I found:

Make play dough and then cut them out with cookie cutters. (I have a recipe if anyone wants!)
Play with measuring cups. Kids apparently love to pour.
I need to buy some balls. We don't have any!
Get some stuff to stack. Right now, he does it on his own in our pantry. As nice as that is, I'd rather things stay in the pantry! :)
Take an empty milk jug and put small stuff in it. Kids will have fun trying to get it out or shaking it.
Give him clothes to take out of the laundry basket and put in another one.
Let him go at the junk mail.
Make small bean bags for him to throw or stack or whatever. (I have a TON of fabric, so this will be fun.)
Let him eat with a spoon or fork at every meal. (I need a splash mat! :)
Go to story time at the library.

Of course these are all in addition to just hanging out outside and exploring at home. I know that it is okay to let kids play by themselves most of the time. It's a learning thing. It's also good for mommy too.

How do you other mommies balance YOUR time with making sure you're spending time with your kids? How much do you play with your kids each day? I need a reality check, so answers would be nice. :) Thanks!!

Spiritual Sunday

Today has been such a weird day. I am feeling very bipolar in my feelings, which makes it hard to follow through on stuff.

I got a call last night from the choir director inviting me to choir practice. It is at 11 am every Sunday. That is usually when I am preparing my lesson so normally I can't make it. My friend Julie Anne said that I just need to prepare my lesson earlier! Of course! So that was the plan, but I ran out of time yesterday.

I was still going to try and make it today. Sundays are Jared's day to sleep in. I normally prepare my lesson when Ryan goes down for a nap around 9:30-10 am. Since choir is at 11, I would have to prepare it earlier and shower earlier.

Well I got up this morning and it just wasn't happening. I was so cranky and tired. There was no way I was going to finish my lesson and shower and take care of Ryan all before 11 am. So I gave up and took a nap when Ryan napped instead. I got my lesson ready and showered all before he woke up. Jared went home teaching at noon so that made it even more crazy. But I stayed calm through it all. Ryan was still eating lunch at 12:55 and I hadn't finished preparing my lesson. Instead of going all crazy trying to get to church on time, I just relaxed. We got there about 1:15ish and still made sacrament! I was so happy. Everything worked out!

I just felt bad I didn't make it to choir. I will try harder next Sunday.

I got up and beared my testimony today. It has been such a long time since I've done that. I haven't had the "get up and do it" knot in my stomach for a long time. I thought, oh fast sunday, I am so glad I don't get those knots any more. Then I thought, well you haven't really done any "missionary work" (what I talked with my primary class about last week), and this would be a great opportunity. Well shoot. Here come the knots!!! So I got up as fast as I could. It was shaky, but the important parts were there. I even teared up. It's been awhile for that. I heard once that it should be called "burying" your testimony. They more you bear it, the bigger it grows. So yes, my heart and soul feels full today.

But I also feel weird today. I told my primary kids I was having a blah day. Don't you ever have one of those? I asked. Some said yes, and one girl said emphatically, NO! She is such a happy girl; I totally believe her. I hope I end today on a good note. I am happier than I was this morning. We'll see. :)

I am trying to do new exercises at night to strengthen my core, and as I do those, I am going to try and remember to say my prayers as well. A 25-year-old mother should never forget to say her prayers. I have much to be grateful for and much that I need. I forget that I have my Heavenly Father here with me at all times to talk to. I need Him. Praying at night will help me strengthen my role as a mother and wife and as a homemaker (what a tough job that is!) This is my spiritual goal this week.

I will try to get back on this week to talk physical stuff. I'm pretty excited about how things are going so please look back for more updates!

Spiritual Sunday

Sorry this is so late. It's been such a crazy couple of weeks. That said, this is going to be short.

I just wanted to say how much I love church. I am loving my calling more and more, and Jared was so nice to take Ryan out and I just listened and felt the spirit so warmly. There are so many things I want to be better at, and I am just reminded about it at church each week.

My teaching companion was released this week and called to the Primary presidency. So that means that I no longer can attend Relief Society until I get a new companion. You would think I would be disappointed, but I totally am not. I actually like being able to teach alone. My teaching companion was AMAZING and I usually felt like I was teaching along with meeting her expectations. I also felt like my class liked her better, even if that is true or not. This past Sunday though, my class was amazing. I dealt with them when I needed to, and we had a lot of fun. I taught them about how to be a missionary even when you're a kid.

I told them the story about Ammon and King Lamoni, and then left out the part about chopping off all the arms, but told them they should ask their parents about it. One boy was SO interested! He wanted to know what it was I wasn't saying. I told him it was violent; of course, he loved it more. I wonder if he did go home and ask him mom about it. He doesn't come as much because he doesn't like church, so I hope the class was fun for him.

I told the kids that I need to work on being a better missionary as well. I am teaching them basic principles like prayer and about Jesus Christ's life. Lately, I have been horrible with my prayers. I would love to get into the habit of saying them morning and night again. So what I realized is that I need to learn from these as well. So each Sunday, I am going to try and do what I ask my kids to do. It should be fun. No, so far I haven't done anything missionary like. I have a few more days this week though! :)

I would like to learn more about the bible, so I have a goal to start reading the New Testament soon and hopefully finish it in a year or so. Is that possible? I hope so. :)

Things are going good. I am still stressed in many areas of my life, but I'm hoping to organize it better so things will be less stressful. We'll see how it goes!

Keep It Simple

Well we finally did it. We took a look at our finances (when I say we, I mean me and Jared. Amazing isn't it!?), and made a budget.

Good news: We made a budget and we have enough to cover our needs.
Bad news: We only make enough to cover our needs. AND we don't have a ton of flexible spending. If only our HOA didn't include cable so we could get rid of it!

The only thing that we could get rid of is our phones, and we'll see with that one. I need texting to talk to my mom (a lot of it) and then I want to be able to make calls if I need to. We used 240 minutes out of 750 last month. Yeah, I'm thinking we don't need that many. But our phone is through Tmobile and you need to have a plan that is at least $50 to have it. Have you seen those Digis billboards? Internet and phone for $20?! We are considering that. Like I said, we'll see.

We can also eat out less. We have already been doing better this month so we'll see how it goes. I hardly eat out, but Jared hates sandwiches (why can't he just love them!?) so lunch just isn't cheap for him. But eating out is way more expensive so we have budgeted that as well as grocery store spending. We also put a cap on home improvements and decorating and all other stuff. I'm excited to see how we do at the end of April.

I would really like to be able to save at least $100 a month until we're decorated and then more afterwards. It sounds pathetic huh? But it's something. And I would like to start a life insurance policy for Jared, as well as an IRA. The main problem is all the decorating we are wanting to do. It's expensive! and I'm even being cheap about it! So I have come up with my motto for decorating: Keep It Simple!

With this in mind, I don't need to compete with everyone in my complex. I just need to decorate enough that it looks nice. It doesn't have to be WOW nice, because face it Shirley, we can't afford that.

We painted our entertainment center a dark brown and bought a wall clock. Now I just need shelves, decorations for the shelves, and pictures of our family and a picture for our dining room. I also would like to get a bench for our hallway and then some hooks to hang coats on for when people come over. Before that though, I need to get some rugs for our super long hallway. I am going to try and pay for all of this with my income that I am bringing in. It isn't much at all, but it is better to use that and remind me to keep it simple and take it one month at a time.

I have also decided to paint my bedroom. My sister-in-law said she would help me, as long as it was before a certain time, so I am going to take her up on that deal. The problem is that I have to buy a bed set so I can match the colors up. Right now our bed has a red and white 80's quilt on it. So comfy, but I am not painting my room BRIGHT RED. The bed set will be quite expensive probably, so I will have to pay for that first. I wish that I had a ton more money to spend on decorating, but I don't. It's okay. I have a nice house and home and I am grateful for that.

Oh and another thing I want to add is that we didn't pay our tithing last month so I could buy some stuff. After going over our budget I am going to be sure that we pay this month. If anything, it will make me feel better and more grateful for the situation we are in. I really can't complain. I have a wonderful husband, the best baby in the world, a warm home, and plenty of food to keep me fat. ;) I think paying our tithing will remind me of this. And maybe someone will write out a check for one million dollars to me for being so cute. Haha. jk!

So if you were wondering, yeah, the search of awesome non-mom jeans is at a halt. Maybe I can get some for my birthday. That's only two months away! I think I can wait until then. :)

GiveAway!

I'm having a give away! Every one is doing them these days.

The winner of the give away gets to come and decorate my house!

In all seriousness, I know no one wants to win this, I really need some one who knows what they are doing. I just went to a woman's house in my ward and her house was decorated so cute! I don't know what I am doing. There is so much to buy. I wish a designer was in the family. Sigh.

Does any one with a cute house want to come and share their knowledge? Thanks. :)

New DVDs

So I took some more pictures since it's been over 3 weeks, and there isn't much difference. It's not surprising because of my neck hurting and then having the typical girly issues. The good news? I'm still 135! Which is awesome because when I wasn't working out, I was eating like a pig.

We have no bad food in the house right now. Kind of sucks, but it's good. I really could use a huge chocolate shake and a piece of cake and a donut. How I love donuts...! BUT I'm being good. And it's really really hard. But I want to lose another 5 pounds and so there goes my fun eating. Sure I can eat an orange, but it just isn't as good. Can you tell I'm really struggling with this!? haha.

I took some pictures of me not flexing so you can see what I really look like. I didn't feel like the last pictures gave the truth. I wish I had taken some of me flexing before. That would have been awesome.

May 2009

6 weeks working out, March 2010

May 2009

6 weeks working out, March 2010

I also took some of me flexing, but I look worse than before. I guess either I gained inches or I didn't roll my pants down far enough. Oh well.

3 Weeks after working out, Feb 2010

6 weeks working out, March 2010

3 Weeks after working out, Feb 2010

6 weeks working out, March 2010

6 weeks working out, March 2010 (I added this one because of the lovely view of the love handles)

I tried P90X last night and thought it was awful. It was all high fitness stuff, which I didn't particularly like. And a lot of it was impossible. If it's impossible now, how do you find the motivation to keep going? Also it gave me a HUGE headache. We did the Core Synergistics, which had us on the floor a lot. I HATE being on the floor that much. Plus it was a full hour and that's too long for me. I wanted to do it with Jared so I waited until Ryan was put to bed and worked afterwards. I didn't get to bed until after 1 am. Working out this way just isn't going to work for me. Sorry Jared! He will do okay on his own though.

Instead of doing P90X, I went to Mom's Into Fitness. It's a website run by Lindsay Brin, the author or Shed 5 Fast, and has a ton of other stuff on there. I decided to do the Boot Camp DVD's (for postnatal) and the Core Firing Sequence Method (it says, tummy tuck without the surgery! We'll see... :). I am very excited to get these and try some other stuff she has. I did the Dance one she has and I didn't like it as much. The moves were kind of hard to follow. I prefer actually working out than dancing, who knew? She is also running a deal that if you buy 3 DVD's, you get 15% off, 4 DVD's you get 20% off, and if you order over $49, you get free shipping. The Shed 5 Fast DVD is also on sale for 20% off. I think that deal goes until March 15th. I hope these all get here quick!


Just a quick shout out about my other endeavors... they are slowly coming along. This week is dedicated just to my office, so I am not allowed to do anything else. I hope to post a picture of a beautiful, organized office on Monday. Wish me luck! Please... :)

Resolutions

I am in a super big funk right now, if you couldn't tell from my last post. I am just feeling pressured and stressed and that makes me want to give up on stuff.

When I am stressed, I stop doing stuff and then get bored and then I eat and laze about. Today I didn't exercise. I just didn't want to. And I ate brownies and chocolate shakes. What is a girl to do?!

Well I asked Jared to start taking care of the finances. We will need to sit down and go over them, which we've been needing to do anyway, and he will do a good job. I'm better at reminding him than I am myself. I guess I'm a natural nag.

Also - since I didn't work out, I didn't shower, and I think that affected the turn out of my day as well. I don't feel as accomplished. I did a lot this morning and then the rest of the day sucked. It actually wasn't bad in the getting stuff done category. I took pictures of Mister and then made his birthday invitations, that rocked, and I did the dishes. Yes the place is still a pig sty, the white laundry that is folded/strewn around by stinkerface is still on the floor in front of the stairs, but that's okay. Tomorrow is a new day. I think that is why I am drinking a chocolate shake now. Better get it in today! :)

Here is what I NEED to do this month:

1. Sew curtains for living room
2. Reupholster ottoman
3. Plan party (food, decorations)
4. Paint entertainment center
5. Decorate living room area (slightly)
6. UNPACK OFFICE (shouldn't this be at the top of the list?)
7. Move finances crap over to Jared's shoulders

Part of the stress is that my job has started taking longer, leaving me less time at night to do stuff. I need to find something to do about it.

I was thinking about how stressed I am and realized that there is something I am forgetting. In my lesson to my primary kids a few weeks ago, I told them about how Heavenly Father is here to help them, they just need to ask. We set up a maze and blindfolded them and I told them that when they needed help to just ask. Both of the kids preferred to do it on their own, even with constant reminding. It took them a lot longer than it would have if they had just asked. I guess we are more like that in this life than I thought. So I need to come to my Heavenly Father and ask him for help. I am not sure what to ask for, but at least to feel at peace with what is going on in my life and to not be so stressed out to the point of being lazy and binging.

Me and Jared are going to be starting P90X and are going to try and do it at night. I don't know how we are going to work it, but we are going to try. The next two days will be my last with Lindsay Brin. I have loved her videos. She has been so awesome! She just had a baby about two weeks ago and is blogging about her after baby body. It is completely honest and she shows you what to do to get back into your pre preggo body. I love it. I will look back to her blog when #2 comes. Her website is www.lindsaybrin.com.

Thanks for listening to me ramble. Any supportive comments would be awesome!

Super Frustrated

I am feeling so frustrated right now!

I feel like I don't have time for anything, therefore everything gets done horribly, or not at all!

Now that Ryan's birthday is coming up, there is so much to do for that. I NEED to get my office unpacked and organized, but it keeps getting pushed out of the way by things that actually have deadlines.

I had the thought today that maybe I should quit working out for a bit. I tried to do it while Ryan was awake, but he kept playing with the TV. I just don't have time for everything I need and want to do.

I just paid our credit card, seeing that we had missed the payment. I forgot about that ONE end of the month payment and it cost us $39. If my desk and the mail was more organized, it wouldn't have happened. It's crazy in here. I really have no idea where a lot of things are and that is not good.

Sometimes I really wish I wasn't breastfeeding so my mom could come and take Ryan for the day. I really think I could get it all done in one day. It would be exhausting, but it would happen.

I haven't exercised yet today because I had to make Ryan's 1st birthday card. His party is on the 20th and I have to get the invitations out ASAP. Before I made that, I had to make him a shirt to take pictures for the card. I'm finally done with it, but there is still plenty more to do like dishes and showering and, oh... my office!

Do you think if I just pray for help, it will magically pop up? It's worth a try...

Spiritual Sunday

I said I would post every Sunday about something I experienced or felt during the week or at church. Well I forgot last Sunday and almost forgot today.

It probably would've been okay to forget today, because as of right now I can't think of anything. I didn't teach today so I was able to go to RS, but of course that means I had stinker face with me. He actually didn't do too bad. He has the worst tantrums though when he can't have something he wants, like sweet lady's scriptures or used tissue. But even though he is stinky (today this word had two meanings), I still enjoy the spirit of RS.

Today's lesson was on knowing that the Lord is here with us and that we are never alone. I haven't been feeling that way lately so my mind was blank on similarities in the lesson. One thing we talked about was Love and how to love everyone. I haven't had too many problems with this lately, but it was a nice reminder.

We had a crazy busy weekend and I am exhausted. One of the main things I realized today is that to really get something out of church, that is special for me no matter where I am at in life, is to get sleep before! We got home last night at around 2 am (Starcraft night for the men, loooong night for the women.:) Jared got up with the baby, but I got up an hour after him. I am so tired. Ryan took a nap during Sacrement meeting and I think that Jared and I both dozed off as well.

If my body isn't alert, I may miss something that the Lord wants me to hear. I guess that is how I felt today. Our goal is to go to bed earlier this week, which will be easier now that the Olympics are over! I love the Olympics, but I am glad they are done so we can get some sleep now.

Anyway, I hope next Sunday's post will be better. I will post tomorrow about all the stuff I need to get done this month before Ryan's 1st birthday party! So fun! :)

Week 6

I am officially on week 6 of my working out! yay me!

So far on week 6, I have really been bad, but it's not my fault. I woke up with a stiff neck monday morning and can hardly take care of my son, much less exercise. I am still hurting today. :( But the good news is my weight is the same.

The things that have been going bad are my eating habits. I have been eating too many sweets! Normally I don't have them in the house, but Jared has been eating out more since we don't have anything "good." So I buy stuff for him, then eat it too.

I feel like having a husband is like having a second kid. At my last grocery trip, I bought spaghettios, mac 'n cheese, frozen burritos, popcorn, chips and salsa, and some other stuff that I can't think of right now. He even doesn't like sandwiches because we have wheat bread and "white bread tastes better with sandwiches." Guess what, if I bought the icky white bread, it would go bad because he would still not make sandwiches to take to work. He would also like Cinnamon Toast Crunch for breakfast. I refuse to get that, too!

The things that are my fault are the Oreo's I bought and the Valentine's candy I bought for 50% off! Mmmm! I will not buy sweets any more. Since I can't diet, I really need to get my sweet addiction under control, so I can make the most out of the time I am putting into exercising. So that is my new goal! As soon as the sweets are gone. :)

I think that after this I am going to one or two weeks of the dancing DVD I have and then it is P90X. Yep, I'm going to do it. I am so scared, but it will be good. I would love to be a size 6 before I get preggo again! I think this will be awesome for that.

Mom Jeans

I don't think that I wear mom jeans. I just wear jeans that don't flatter my body. Why would I do this? Well I don't spend money on clothes AND I have a weird body. It's funny how most of us have weird bodies. I'm not saying that any of YOU do, but well, let's be honest, who LOVES shopping for jeans? If you do, can you come with me, pretty please??

Would you like to see some examples of my awfulness?!

Exhibit 1: Saggy butt, too long legs, low waisted miserableness. These are the jeans I pretty much wear ALL the time. WHY? I really don't know... they are even too big for me.

Exhibit 2: I bought these jeans back in Septemberish when I was sick of wearing only one pair of jeans (does anyone else do this?) I don't know what I was thinking. They are too short (trying to make up for the too long ones up top), and I think hug my knees too much creating a little person look. They also are low waisted, meaning the pockets are super low and if not for my awesome temple garments, my crack would be hanging out (TMI?)

HELP!

Oh I seriously need it. I am willing to spend $50-$80(if they are PERFECT!) on some everyday jeans that I can dress up. I've emailed Jae from How To Not Dress Like A Mom, so hopefully I have some coming my way.

What I need to know is:

1. Where do I go?
2. What shape should I go for?
3. How long should the pants be to look good with flats and a little heel? (How much touching the floor?)

I really want to start looking good. I have a lot of things to overcome with shopping. I think things look cute, but I COULD NEVER WEAR IT! How lame is that? I am limiting myself, and I am not sure if I can get out of it, but I think if I have some jeans that make ME look hot, I might have some hope.

Thanks!

My List

One of the things on my organization post was to make a list. This list would be for things that I want to do or accomplish and it can be a month from now or years from now. The point is to put it on the list so you don't forget about it. I remembered something yesterday that I wanted to make, but completely forgot!

I wanted to make a tied hanging dish towel for the oven because Babykins ALWAYS pulls it down. The towel ends up on the counter so messyish. When I remembered, I thought, how in the world did I forget about that project? It turns out I have a million projects in my head and it really isn't that implausible to forget a few of them.

So here is my list. I will add to it or subtract it as I go so this post will be ever changing. Yay for remembering what I want to do!

(It will be a small list for now since time is limited.)

Make hanging dish towel thingy
Put up a shelf in the office with vacation memorabilia
Buy non-mom jeans
Finish Blog Books
Make a jean quilt
Make a budget (Desperately)

Epiphany!

I haven't had many of these on my own. Many of "my" great ideas come from other mommies, or bloggers, or friends. I just had one now that I have to share!

You know how my office is my biggest trial in unpacking? That I just can't get organized because there is so much to do?!

Well, here is the epiphany!

Why in the heck am I worrying about organizing the past before I can organize the present and future?!

So from this day forward, I am going to focus on organizing stuff for now. Even if that means I need to put everything that isn't a month old or less in a box and throwing it in the closet. I am so excited to get started!

Just Do It

I don't want to work out today. I really, really don't. I was so happy yesterday and today I just feel like I want to quit because it takes so much and I'm seeing so little. But I know that isn't true and I do plan on working out. But I just want you to know, I really don't want to. Okay, now I am going to get my sweat on.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that

There is so much that I've been wanting to blog about. Seriously, like 15 times a day in the past week I have said to myself, I need to blog about this! But when I finally get a moment to sit down and write, my mind is completely empty. The brain of a mom, right?

I want to start out with some spiritual stuff. I think from now on I am going to do a Spiritual Sunday. The last time I wrote, I was very depressed about my calling in the primary. As I look back, I really have no idea where those feelings were coming from. The feelings were so real, but looking back on the memory of where they came from, it doesn't seem THAT bad. I've been to my class twice since I wrote, and it went well. I taught last week and the problem girl wasn't there, but I know it would have been fine if she were there. The kids were great as always and I really felt the spirit with me. I prayed during my lesson and after, and prayer is so powerful. I know I had some assistance that day. Last week I was just observing and that was good too. I went to Relief Society and got to be with Ryan. Let me tell you! I was wishing I was in the primary!! What a stinker! lol. He is getting more and more independent and I had to be in the halls with him about half the time. Jared does better with him at church, and I might just have Jared take him even if I go to RS since Daddy does a better job. :)

Jared was called to be the Assistant Secretary in the Elders Quorem. He heard this past Sunday that the Secretary might be closing on a house soon, so he is worried that he will be the Secretary. I know that he will do a good job though. We are both doing pretty well in our callings and trying to incorporate the gospel in our lives more. I know that we will be blessed and as we are, hopefully, we can share these blessings with others.

MIND

I have SO many things I want to do. Seriously, it's ridiculous! Of course all of my decorating has to be a craft project, so I can't just go and buy stuff. I am stalled on Ryan's room since I ran out of money this month. I am so excited to finish it though. I have everything I want to do in my head.

I work part-time for my sister-in-law at The Ribbon Retreat, on the wholesale site, and in the past had been putting the check directly into our checking account. Well, we don't have a US Bank around here so Jared had to take a bit of time off work to go and deposit it for me in Provo. I hated that! So I opened a savings account at American First Credit Union in the Macey's here. I LOVE banking while grocery shopping; whoever came up with that idea is a genius!

Since I have started doing this, I decided to keep the money set aside for certain things. Every three or four years all the girls in Jared's family go on a cruise. It is such a blast! Right now I am saving up for that with my own money. It's kind of nice to have a purpose instead of having it go straight to bills. After I save enough for that, I am going to buy a desk for our downstairs area. After that, maybe a camera! Who knows! But it is so exciting to watch the money build up towards a goal, not just saving.

I have also made some headway in my office! Yay! I worked on it for 20 minutes yesterday, just making it more liveable, and it worked! I have decided to do all of the easy stuff first instead of the hard stuff. Before I just wanted to get the hard stuff out of the way, you know shredding all our old documents in our file cabinet and organizing the cabinet. Right now all of our documents go into a bag, yes, a bag. Not even a nice bag. A plastic grocery bag. We have 2 1/2 of them right now. The first two are tied, but have ripped so you have to be careful carrying them. See how desperate I am in need of some organizing? But this shouldn't come first, otherwise nothing might get done! I realized this yesterday so instead my next task is organizing my scrapbook/craft table. This should be much easier and hopefully I can get it done in a day or two. (Progress, not perfection, right?:)

BODY

I am still going strong on the working out! I am so proud of myself. It can be really difficult to keep doing it, especially with a baby, but I know how important it is and I am keeping at it. I'm even up a pound since my last post. :( But that's okay. My new work out isn't too bad aerobically, but the toning parts kick my trash. I started doing the push ups regular style and my abs, sides, and arms hurt so bad! It's a good bad though, so I'm excited. I have two more weeks of these work outs and hopefully a few more pounds lost and an even smaller waist.

I wish that I could diet right now to get the maximum results, but nursing won't allow me to do that. So I am just accepting that I am going to put forth the effort and what comes comes. I'll be pregnant again before I stop nursing, so I can't diet then. I have to keep focusing on eating healthy and exercising and I know it will all work out.

Thanks for letting me ramble! Hopefully the next post will have something more specific. I hope you're all doing well in all of your endeavors. Women have such hard jobs! But I'll admit, it's fun too. :) We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Pop Art

Okay! I think I might have done it!

Here is what I wanted to do again:


Here is my picture I started from...



and then add a little pop art!





I think it looks really good. I changed the picture I was using and made the green a bit darker and then played around with it more. I'm so glad it turned out! Now I want to do this to at least one more to put up on his wall!

(By the way, his room is turning out SO cute! I can't wait until it's all done so I can post pictures!)

Day 24

Just because I haven't blogged about it, doesn't mean I am not doing it! I am still working out! Although I did not work out last Thursday until yesterday. I had to get Ryan's room painted so he could go back to sleeping in there! But let me tell you, painting IS a work out! My arms and back hurt so bad, so I guess I was still exercising.

I have started workout 2 on my DVD, Shed 5 Fast by Lindsay Brinn. It is easier and harder in some ways. The aerobic exercises seem easier and the toning is harder. My inner thighs are killing me, which is so awesome! I can't wait to slim these guys down.

I started working out at weighing between 138-141 pounds. I am now about 135 pounds. I am including a picture taken this morning as well as the one on my very first post on this blog. I was 143.5 pounds then and wearing my capris a bit too high! You can see my lovely stretch marks and tons of skin, but I do feel like I am skinnier. I haven't felt it yet in my clothes, but I'm hoping to in these next few weeks.

Before (wearing pants too high :)

After

Before (I wasn't flexing my abs; I would've looked a bit skinnier)

After (We're getting there!)

I'm feeling great! Those of you who are working out as well, how is it going? Please comment here or on Facebook. I love workout buddies. :)

Organization

I was going to do a post to recap where I am at with my goals at the beginning of the month, but can you believe it is almost the 10th already!? Seriously, time flies nowadays! Hopefully I will still get around to this before the end of the month, sooner the better.

My very first goal for my resolutions was:

"1. Be more organized.

This is with my time, as well with everything important in my life. I really haven't totally unpacked yet from the move and I just feel like everything is scattered. By the end of the month, I want to have my office completely unpacked and organized.

I want to have a weekly schedule where I sit down on a Saturday or Sunday and write down my goals for the week. I've always worked best by thinking about stuff weekly. If it was something two weeks in advance, I would completely forget about it and put it out of my mind. By writing it down, I will have more of a chance of getting it done."

Well, my ward had a class on organization tonight, and I would've have been silly not to go since this was my number one resolution! I am so glad I went because I got a lot of helpful hints, especially for my office which is still plaguing me!, and some confirmation on what I am currently doing.

The number one thing was prioritizing. I feel that I have done this really well so far. I have my priorities and I am able to move them around if need be. For example, I am working out everyday, but if something comes up and I have to skip it, I skip it, but I am right back on it the next day. It just depends on how important stuff is and I don't beat myself up about it.

I took notes on some of the stuff I wanted to use or remember. Writing it here will definitely help me, and maybe it will help some of you as well.

1. Use Microsoft Outlook or a calendar.
I had forgotten about this. I had one at work and why not have one at home? I am horrible with dates that are over a week in advance. I plan everything weekly so I am more prone to forget or think a date incorrectly. I have a hard time using planners and paper calendars, so I am going to give an electronic calendar, that automatically reminds me of stuff, a try. (Although we don't have Microsoft Office on any of our computers, so I'll have to get creative with this one.)

2. To-do list for everything.
This is not just a daily one, but a weekly, monthly, even yearly or more! I liked this because I have lots of goals and plans that are far off in advance and just having them written down means I won't forget about them. I already write stuff down mentally for the week, I'm awesome at that, but doing a monthly one would be awesome since my mind is often in overload.

3. "Live each day on purpose."
I liked this quote. Everyday I am just happy if I get one important thing done. That can even be doing the dishes or laundry or going outside for a walk with the baby. I guess this quote has a lot to do with your attitude. We have control of what we want to be; we just need to do it.

4. "Progress, not perfection."
This one was awesome. If you have a big project, organizing a closet or basement or whatever, just make sure to keep going back to it and not letting it just sit. Sometimes I am guilty of saying, I can't do it perfect now, so I am not going to try. I love this quote for my office. I can definitely say I am making progress weekly. :)

5. Don't let the little jobs add up. AND Include cleaning up as a part of every single task.
I like these ones a lot. I need to listen to it about laundry. I always have a load in the dryer for over a week and it's such a pain to have to go into it to get something and it wastes a lot of time. If I had just folded it and put it away right when it was ready, I wouldn't have to spend the time going down the stairs or over to the laundry room to get what I need. So I really need to listen to this suggestion.

I have also learned that if I don't clean up Ryan's high chair right after he eats, I hate myself when I have to clean it before he eats. Dry stuck on food is NOT fun to clean when you have a hungry infant crying and pulling on you. Since I can do this cleaning after he eats, hopefully I can do the folding of the laundry after it's done.

6. 3 Pile Process: Love/Use, Ambivalent, Discard
This is what to use when you are cleaning a big project like a basement, closet, or garage. You don't need to put everything away or in a certain place, just put them in 3 piles and then get back at them later. I think this makes getting started a lot easier. There is less to think about, just focusing on those three things. I already tend to do this, but not so simplified. I will try this with the rest of my office organizing.

7. Mail
Oh mail, how I hate thee! I hate how messy it is and the filing you have to do or whatever. I think I have gotten better and I still hate it. Right now, we don't have a place to put it so it goes on the kitchen island, read, into a pile, taken up to the abyss which is the office and forgotten forever. Yes, it isn't pretty.

We will be buying a table for our entry way soon, and I am going to buy one of these nice thingys. It's a 3 bin thing that you would see on most people's workspace. It helps to separate the mail until you can get at it. The top is to shred, middle is for bills, and the bottom is for filing. I am going to see if I can find a nice decorative one and I think it is going to make the mess that is our office much easier to handle!

8. Magnetic shopping list
I can't wait to use this! While I was unpacking the office boxes I found one, but it is Christmasy and I am still going to use it. I'm am so excited to be more efficient in my grocery shopping!

9. Alphabetize spice rack
Most people already do this. I just learned about a week ago that the grocery store does this. Yes for years I searched and searched for the spice I needed. Now that I am a SAHM, I am so glad I figured it out since I am cooking more and need more spices. So of course it makes sense to do it in my own home. Searching for spices is NOT fun! Now I just need to get one of those circling spice racks!

10. Ice cube trays for jewelry
I don't have a lot of jewelry, but I thought this was cool. If you have a draw you put all your jewelry in and it's all a big mess and you don't have the money for a nice fancy looking jewelry organizer, just use ice cube trays. You could probably even decorate them to make them look fancier for all you crafty ladies out there. :)

That is it for all the stuff I wanted to remember. It was fun and made me so much more motivated to get organized! Hopefully the office by the end of this month. I know I said last month, but progress is what's important!

Here are some websites that were given out:

www.hgtv.com/organizing
www.getorganizedwizard.com
unclutterer.com
organizedhome.com
www.organizedwithstyle.com/blog
getorganizedtips.blogspot.com
www.stacksandstacks.com
containerstore.com/welcome
lifeorganizers.com/cm_articles/16_the_organized_closet
www.thehomeknowitall.com/the_home_knowitall/2007/09/organize-it-the.hmtl

I hope this gets some of you motivated and gives you some fresh new ideas! Good luck!