Month: September 2013

weigh to stay: 8 months in

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

Click HERE for previous updates.

I know I just posted my August update but it was late and I’m trying to get ahead of the game here, since I actually have a game plan for once.  Waaay back at the beginning of January, I said I was going to make my health a priority this year.  I wanted to do it for myself and for my family.  I wanted to feel better, be better, do better, and be an example to my kids.  I wanted to have the energy I needed to keep up with them and play with them for as long as they wanted me to.  All that being said, I had the goal of our vacation in mind.  I knew I had 9 months to lose enough weight to feel comfortable in shorts and to build up to having the energy needed for successfully surviving the theme parks.

I have maintained the weight loss thus far.  However, I’ve been tired these last couple of weeks.  I’ve noticed that the metabolism tanks and the exhaustion creeps in way faster than the pounds come back.  But I know that the pounds are not far behind once I start slacking in other areas. There are a lot of excuses for not exercising much this summer, but none of them can justify my laziness, which is what it boils down to.  I say I don’t have time, but I made time before when it was top priority.  I have as much time now as I did 6 months ago.  The only difference is that I’m now at a comfortable weight so I don’t feel the same urgency and drive that I did before.

I’m ready to get back to it, for real.  I ran outside yesterday with a goal of running a 1.6 mile loop in 17 minutes.  Well, I made it 15 minutes (not sure of the distance) and thought I was going to die.  I mean, DIE. First run in about two months and I chose 3:30pm and 86 degrees – maybe not my best choice for getting back into the groove. I’m not sure of the distance, but maybe 1.2 miles.  Determined to do better, I went to the gym today and guess what?  AGAIN.  I thought I was going to die at 15 minutes.  But I didn’t.  I pushed myself to make it another minute. Then another quarter mile. Then til the end of this song. Over and over until I made it 3.1 miles – a whole 5k! On a treadmill, I know, but I did it.  And only for the second time in my life.  I’m ready to get back to it.  Nothing like that sense of accomplishment for doing something you didn’t believe you could do. We’ve got about four weeks until our vacation and my goal is 12 runs in 4 weeks.  2 down, 10 to go. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Since it’s been a long time, here are some then and now shots.  In the same clothes.

Then (Jan 2013) & Now (Sept 2013)

Now (Sept 2013) & Then (Jan 2013)
Hold me accountable!
xo,
~C~

Labor Day weekend and then some

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest
Aug. 25, 2013.  My boys have taken to napping anywhere but in their beds.  Theo’s weekend naps are pretty much always on the couch now. I’m fine with that – it takes both of them 10 times longer to fall asleep at naptime when they are both in their room.
Dexter woke up shortly after falling asleep and asked to sleep with me in my bed.  He went right back to sleep…and I woke him up 3+ hours later.

The light in our room was just right for sneaking some pics.  I can’t imagine ever getting tired of watching them sleep.  Even when they’re zit-faced metal-mouth teenagers.

Fast forward to Labor Day.  My sister and her family came from Tennessee for the weekend.  They arrived very late Friday night and we were up before the sun Saturday morning with our early risers.  We traveled 90 minutes east to visit relatives.

Just another trip to our uncle’s alpaca farm.
Checking out Uncle Joe’s cool Corvette Stingray.
Aunt Sandy introducing Penelope to one of her babies.
After a long day of playing and no napping, we made the mistake of setting up dinner plans. Long story short, it was one of the most embarrassing parenting moments I’ve had. Both boys throwing fits (understatement of the decade) in the restaurant. Ryan and I functioning on 4 hrs of sleep. No thank you – we kindly skipped out of the restaurant and drove home.  The boys slept all the way home and then went right back to sleep in their beds after dinner.
Sunday I woke up with an eye infection … awesome.  We had made plans to go to Ryan’s parent’s house to swim in the lake. I got up early and fixed cheesy potatoes and grape salad. Yum & Yum.  We got down there a little after 11am and made a day of it. I ended up not taking my camera down to the dock for obvious reasons but did squeeze in a mini sesh with beautiful 8 month old Penelope Quinn.

She wasn’t in much of a smiling mood, this was about as close as we got to a smile Sunday.

I just love chubby little baby hands and arms and thighs and feet and…you know. Baby chubbiness.  So cute.
Monday morning we lounged around the house before heading to the outlet mall to check out the Labor Day deals.  After that it was time for my sweet sis and her amazing family to hit the road.  Sad to see them go, realizing after spending such quality time together how much we are missing by living so far apart.
Isabella and Malachi – my first niece and my first nephew. Now I have two of each.  These are 2 good kids.  REALLY good kids.  Love them to pieces.
They all left a little after 5pm and I went home to spend a little extra time with my own little fam.  Back to work. Back to school. Back to the babysitter.  We’re all getting back into our post-holiday routine. To toss in a little excitement, we went to the ice cream shop last night and then the library, which is right across the street.  The boys love this library, and so do I.  We let them check out books for the first time.
How’s that for a photo & info overload?  Now that we’re almost into another weekend, I hope your Labor Day weekend was great and I hope this coming weekend is too!
xoxo,
~C~