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| Why good morning Ma! |
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| Hands are delish! |
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| What to do about this octopus? |
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| You forgot to wipe my face ma! |
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| What the.... |
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| Slowly... |
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| getting.... |
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| pissed. |
1.12.2011
Wordless Wednesday: Ethan's Morning in Pictures
1.11.2011
Baby babbles
This video is a tad bit old, but I figured I'd put something newer of my little "pickle pot pie" up since many of you haven't seen him in a while. He's such a funny little guy! I have something special in store for tomorrow, so keep your eyes peeled tomorrow night/Wednesday morning!
1.09.2011
5%
is the amount of my body weight I've lost in the 10 weeks since I started weight watchers again. I'm about 12 pounds lighter now and it feels wonderful! Losing weight is great, but it's even better to see the effects on my life and my body.
My engagement ring now fits again! Yay!
My knees no longer hurt when I get off a low chair or couch.
I don't have to wear my skirts around my ribcage anymore.
I think I need a lower band size on my bra!
All in all, I'm not quitting until I see more results. I still have some pre-pregnancy pants that don't fit yet. I set my new goal weight at 10% loss, that's about where I was before I got pregnant. I have all intentions of continuing the weight loss once I hit that goal. For those of you who are thinking of trying to lose weight, I really recommend Weight Watchers, the new points plus system has been working marvelously for me!
My engagement ring now fits again! Yay!
My knees no longer hurt when I get off a low chair or couch.
I don't have to wear my skirts around my ribcage anymore.
I think I need a lower band size on my bra!
All in all, I'm not quitting until I see more results. I still have some pre-pregnancy pants that don't fit yet. I set my new goal weight at 10% loss, that's about where I was before I got pregnant. I have all intentions of continuing the weight loss once I hit that goal. For those of you who are thinking of trying to lose weight, I really recommend Weight Watchers, the new points plus system has been working marvelously for me!
1.07.2011
Money saving tactics from a broke mom
So, Austine has been out of a job for such a long time now. He graduated from college 2 years ago with his B.A. (which has done nothing for us) in Graphic Design. He's been working with his dad since he was 16, so he's pretty handy with a hammer and some nails, and that's what gets us through our various expenses. Unfortunately, that kind of work can be really unpredictable. One month you will make buttloads, and the next month you'll have nothing. Right now we are in a nothing month so I am in super saver mode, especially when it comes to groceries.
Tip #1: Whole Chicken
Yup, that's right. The whole bird. There is so many things you can do with this (that is super super easy), and it's so cheap. A largeish chicken will cost 5-6 dollars, which is as much as a pound and a half of chicken breasts. The good thing about a whole chicken is that it's really useful for up to three meals. That's a lot when you're dirt poor. Normally, I will roast it up, eat one side as a meal, then use the other side shredded in tacos, pot pie, or something else. Then I will save the bones and leftover meat and make chicken and dumpling soup. All in all I think each meal costs about 2-3 dollars each this way.
Tip#2: Wholesale Stores
Ok, so this may not be the most unique and secret technique to save money, but it works. The key at stores like Costco and Sams Club is to buy shelf stable items, toiletries, and other things you tend to use on a daily basis. If you buy veggies, meat, or other unstable food items you're going to end up wasting money. I don't know anyone who can eat 10 lbs of grapes in a week. We typically buy toilet paper, paper towels, napkins, condiments, canned, and freezer items there. Our toilet paper managed to last us a whole year (I know, how did that happen with Austine's butt? Only God knows).
Tip#3: Make everything from scratch
Yeah, it's a pain in the butt. But in the long run it saves you money and tastes better. I know our grocery bill always ends up higher when we buy a lot of stuff from the freezer aisle (our own laziness). I can always whip something up from a bit of flour and butter, and it's definitely gotten us out of a few messes (also known as, we have no food, what are we eating?).
Tip#4: Treasure Box
My mom clued me in on this community site that serves California and Arizona. Treasure Box is a website that has a monthly menu that you buy from; you buy a whole box at a time. In this box is a weeks worth of food: for 30-35 dollars. It's a huge savings and makes a big difference on our grocery bill. Obviously we are needy enough to get this, but if we were making more money I don't think I'd feel comfortable using it anymore, there are enough people who really need them.
Tip #1: Whole Chicken
Yup, that's right. The whole bird. There is so many things you can do with this (that is super super easy), and it's so cheap. A largeish chicken will cost 5-6 dollars, which is as much as a pound and a half of chicken breasts. The good thing about a whole chicken is that it's really useful for up to three meals. That's a lot when you're dirt poor. Normally, I will roast it up, eat one side as a meal, then use the other side shredded in tacos, pot pie, or something else. Then I will save the bones and leftover meat and make chicken and dumpling soup. All in all I think each meal costs about 2-3 dollars each this way.
Tip#2: Wholesale Stores
Ok, so this may not be the most unique and secret technique to save money, but it works. The key at stores like Costco and Sams Club is to buy shelf stable items, toiletries, and other things you tend to use on a daily basis. If you buy veggies, meat, or other unstable food items you're going to end up wasting money. I don't know anyone who can eat 10 lbs of grapes in a week. We typically buy toilet paper, paper towels, napkins, condiments, canned, and freezer items there. Our toilet paper managed to last us a whole year (I know, how did that happen with Austine's butt? Only God knows).
Tip#3: Make everything from scratch
Yeah, it's a pain in the butt. But in the long run it saves you money and tastes better. I know our grocery bill always ends up higher when we buy a lot of stuff from the freezer aisle (our own laziness). I can always whip something up from a bit of flour and butter, and it's definitely gotten us out of a few messes (also known as, we have no food, what are we eating?).
Tip#4: Treasure Box
My mom clued me in on this community site that serves California and Arizona. Treasure Box is a website that has a monthly menu that you buy from; you buy a whole box at a time. In this box is a weeks worth of food: for 30-35 dollars. It's a huge savings and makes a big difference on our grocery bill. Obviously we are needy enough to get this, but if we were making more money I don't think I'd feel comfortable using it anymore, there are enough people who really need them.
1.05.2011
My feet are having a love affair
For Christmas, my wonderful husband showered me with gifts of all kinds, but my absolute favorite gift was a pair of Target Uggs knockoffs. I wore them straight for a week and three days (yes those extra days matter!), and suddenly they began to fall apart at the seams. I went through several days of withdrawals (mainly cold feet) until we finally got to Target to return them. This is where I discovered Muk-Luks.
Muk-Luks are like a fusion of a very warm scarf, durable shoes, and a fluffy warm animal. I have to say I'm in love with these much much more than I was in love with my Fuggs, and I was head over heels for those things. They are incredibly warm and comfortable, I don't think I could have done better if I had gotten real Uggs anyways. Besides, the 19.99 price tag was amazing.
P.S. You can buy my exact pair here or find them everywhere online.
Muk-Luks are like a fusion of a very warm scarf, durable shoes, and a fluffy warm animal. I have to say I'm in love with these much much more than I was in love with my Fuggs, and I was head over heels for those things. They are incredibly warm and comfortable, I don't think I could have done better if I had gotten real Uggs anyways. Besides, the 19.99 price tag was amazing.
P.S. You can buy my exact pair here or find them everywhere online.
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| Look, my feet are smiling! |
1.04.2011
Hush Little Baby....
Ethan has been sleeping so well this past week (knock on wood). I've actually been getting around 7-8 hours of straight sleep each night! Originally he wouldn't even sleep by himself, but we figured out that swaddling him, and rocking him with his pacifier in his mouth would lead to complete dead to the world sleep (at least at bedtime, nap-time is a whole 'nother animal). Normally the rocking will take a while, anywhere from 10-40 minutes (yes, 40 minutes of non-stop rocking). During this time he is half asleep, but if you put him down too soon all hell will break loose.
During this time I entertain myself by thinking of things I could be doing, should be doing, I want to do or get. Most of all, I end up singing Hush Little Baby to him. It normally goes like this:
Hush little baby don't say a word,
Mama's gonna buy you a mocking bird,
And if that mocking bird don't sing,
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring,
And if that diamond ring don't shine, (here's where its evident I don't know the words)
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond mine,
And if that mine don't produce, (ok that doesn't fit)
Mama's gonna buy you a golden goose,
And if that golden goose don't lay,
Mama's gonna buy you a bale of hay, (what every 3 month old is dreaming about for christmas this year)
And if that bale of hay makes you sneeze, (if you know my husband it probably will)
Mama's gonna buy you some bee's knees.....
And it goes on and on and on and on.
Here's a link to the real lyrics (and more importantly, the history) if you're curious. Feel free to finish my lyrics in the comment section ;)
During this time I entertain myself by thinking of things I could be doing, should be doing, I want to do or get. Most of all, I end up singing Hush Little Baby to him. It normally goes like this:
Hush little baby don't say a word,
Mama's gonna buy you a mocking bird,
And if that mocking bird don't sing,
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring,
And if that diamond ring don't shine, (here's where its evident I don't know the words)
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond mine,
And if that mine don't produce, (ok that doesn't fit)
Mama's gonna buy you a golden goose,
And if that golden goose don't lay,
Mama's gonna buy you a bale of hay, (what every 3 month old is dreaming about for christmas this year)
And if that bale of hay makes you sneeze, (if you know my husband it probably will)
Mama's gonna buy you some bee's knees.....
And it goes on and on and on and on.
Here's a link to the real lyrics (and more importantly, the history) if you're curious. Feel free to finish my lyrics in the comment section ;)
1.02.2011
Happy New Year!
Well, I haven't blogged in a few months. Life is fast and crazy with a 3 month old! It really is insane how fast children grow. One night he was wearing his 0-3 pajamas, the next morning they didn't fit! He is now 12 lbs and 23 and 3/4 inches (as of the last checkup). His is getting so chubby and cute!
Here are a few photos:
Since it is the New Year, I'd like to put the few goals I have out there for all to see.
Lose Weight
So yes, this is a pretty typical New Years resolution. I gained about 40 pounds (I will be honest, I was 222 when I delivered Ethan). I am now 196.5. This is (obviously) not my ideal weight, or even the weight I was at when I got pregnant. I've always been on the "soft" side, I don't think I've ever not had fat on me. As a child, I was super skinny. When I hit puberty I ballooned up (thank you hormones). I would love to feel healthy. To me, this is really around 155-160. That's 35-40 lbs that I want to lose. While I have to be honest and say that I probably will not lose it all by next year, I would at least like to weight less than I do now next New Years.
I have a few ways I'm planning on losing the weight. Weight Watchers helped me before I got married, and now I'm turning to them again to lose the weight. I also am planning on joining 24 Hour Fitness when Ethan is 6 months old. This is the age that they accept for the daycare there. Hopefully you all can witness me become a new person. As long as I don't give up, it'll happen eventually, right?
Write here at least once a week
I love writing and even though I may not be that great at it, it's always made me feel a lot better to write down my thoughts and emotions as they run through me. I have a great journal I wrote in my HS years, and I love to look back at it and see how much I've changed. This blog will ideally become a log of how my family and I have changed over the years.
Get A a job
I think we've always had this goal, but now more than ever it is important. Right now A and I are in a funk, he has no work with his dad, and of course I am not working anymore. We really need something that brings in at least 15/hr. Recently he got a job offer for 11/hr, but it wouldn't have provided for us...he makes more with his dad. It felt really selfish to turn down a job after we've been hunting for so long, but we had to stay realistic. I'm really hoping we see some upturn in the economy this year.
Pray and attend church
I'll be the first to admit we haven't been as great as we should be at this. For me, it's easy to forget my prayers when I get sucked up into this material world of ours. Church has always been hard for me to go to because I really am not a morning person at all. I feel extremely guilty about this. This year, I want to try and get into a routine, remember to say my prayers everyday, and only miss church if I am sick.
So there we go: Health, Money, Heart and Soul. A goal for each facet of my life. I'm really looking forward to this year, I bet it is going to be 100x better than 2010!
Here are a few photos:
Since it is the New Year, I'd like to put the few goals I have out there for all to see.
Lose Weight
So yes, this is a pretty typical New Years resolution. I gained about 40 pounds (I will be honest, I was 222 when I delivered Ethan). I am now 196.5. This is (obviously) not my ideal weight, or even the weight I was at when I got pregnant. I've always been on the "soft" side, I don't think I've ever not had fat on me. As a child, I was super skinny. When I hit puberty I ballooned up (thank you hormones). I would love to feel healthy. To me, this is really around 155-160. That's 35-40 lbs that I want to lose. While I have to be honest and say that I probably will not lose it all by next year, I would at least like to weight less than I do now next New Years.
I have a few ways I'm planning on losing the weight. Weight Watchers helped me before I got married, and now I'm turning to them again to lose the weight. I also am planning on joining 24 Hour Fitness when Ethan is 6 months old. This is the age that they accept for the daycare there. Hopefully you all can witness me become a new person. As long as I don't give up, it'll happen eventually, right?
Write here at least once a week
I love writing and even though I may not be that great at it, it's always made me feel a lot better to write down my thoughts and emotions as they run through me. I have a great journal I wrote in my HS years, and I love to look back at it and see how much I've changed. This blog will ideally become a log of how my family and I have changed over the years.
Get A a job
I think we've always had this goal, but now more than ever it is important. Right now A and I are in a funk, he has no work with his dad, and of course I am not working anymore. We really need something that brings in at least 15/hr. Recently he got a job offer for 11/hr, but it wouldn't have provided for us...he makes more with his dad. It felt really selfish to turn down a job after we've been hunting for so long, but we had to stay realistic. I'm really hoping we see some upturn in the economy this year.
Pray and attend church
I'll be the first to admit we haven't been as great as we should be at this. For me, it's easy to forget my prayers when I get sucked up into this material world of ours. Church has always been hard for me to go to because I really am not a morning person at all. I feel extremely guilty about this. This year, I want to try and get into a routine, remember to say my prayers everyday, and only miss church if I am sick.
So there we go: Health, Money, Heart and Soul. A goal for each facet of my life. I'm really looking forward to this year, I bet it is going to be 100x better than 2010!
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