Thoughts on Losing Weight

Hey hey Happy Monday! So I’ve been thinking lately, about my weight loss.

That junk is hard! Ugh.

I started trying to drop some el-bees in June of last year. My starting weight had ballooned to 171.2. YIKES. By December I successfully dropped 25 of those suckers through healthier eating and regular exercise. However, for the past month or two I’ve been hovering around the same zone of 147-150. The lowest weight I saw was 146 but that was on a day I stayed home sick and hadn’t eaten much so I’m attributing it to that. My goal weight is 135 and then I plan to work hard on toning up and maintaining. So I’m about 15 pounds away from my goal weight. I tend to really be stuck at 148 most days. MUST BE MORE DISCIPLINED!

Now, for some random thoughts:

-       - My three day a week routine consists of 90% weight training. That really makes it hard to lose weight because I’m gaining muscle while trying to lose fat. I’m okay with gaining muscle but I hate that it’s making it hard to reach that “magic number” in my head of 135. I know it’s not all about the number on the scale, but that’s where I want to be. I’m at a plateau right now and struggling to break through.

-      - Putting weight on is super easy. We should really switch to this method rather than losing. I’d definitely reach that goal! For real though, I can work super hard for two weeks straight and lose 4 pounds, then have one really fun eating weekend and it’s all back. Grrr. On a side note, Texas Roadhouse’s Grilled Shrimp Entrée is AMAZEBALLS. That’s all.

-       - Some days, even though I’ve lost ~25 lbs., I still feel like a busted can of biscuits. The only area I’ve seen noticeable toning has been my arms. However, I only see that when I’m flexing. Unfortunately I can’t walk around flexing all day every day. People would get jealous. So instead in my non-flex state I still have a flabby looking arm. I vow to have tank top worthy arms come warm weather season! I’m kind of obsessing over having toned arms.

-       - Clothes are fitting better. When I cleaned out my closet recently, I tried on a bunch of my favorite jeans that were shoved in the back because I planned to fit into them again “one day”. One of them is a pair of skinny jeans from AE that I loved. I tried them on thinking they wouldn’t go up my thigh (like last time) and they not only went on but buttoned!! Now I can’t go having anyone besides my thighs hanging out in them because they’re not roomy, but by God they went on and I even wore them in public. SCORE. They’re a size 10 (see below) and I really hope to not fit into them in a few months (as in they’ll be too big) but I’m not sure if that’s going to happen due to a perpetual donk. I did however recently experience the back of the jeans gap. I’ve never had that because my butt is just big and didn’t perk up much, but apparently the squats are working because my booty was sticking out causing a small waisted gap! SCORE #2.

 

-       - Punching extra holes in belts makes me vedy vedy heppy!! Thanks Dad for acquiring a belt hole puncher for your ever-shrinking daughter (ha!)

-       - I’ve started randomly riding my bike around the neighborhood. I’m super enjoying it. I would like to invest in a nice bike with changing gears but for now, I’ll ride my beach cruiser and curse the hills! Oh and sometimes I have to go for a ride when I get home so I can eat dinner. Whatever works…calorie counting!

-       - I’m obsessed with being tiny and cute. Which I’ll never be. It’s just not in my bone structure. When I see girls with skinny little calves in boots with lots of room to put an extra set of calves in there, I seethe with envy. I’ve noticed mine have gotten smaller (which led to a very expensive rainboot purchase!) but no matter how many calf raises I do, I’ll always be a big calved girl. Oh well, at least I have a great head of hair. And I’ll get picked first for Kickball. Take that scraggly haired girls with skinny calves!

-        I’m having fun(?) trying to figure out ways to eat healthy. I tried mason jar salads (Pinterest, I love you) last week and they were easy, convenient and healthy. I tried some different recipes this week, all prepped on Sunday. I’m loving them! 

Okay, that’s all I’ve got. Until then I’ll be truckin towards that dream bod because I’ve got a loooong way to go! And lest I forget…I’ll focus on how far I’ve come instead of how far I have to go. Take a look at this gem circa early 2013!              

Buzz, your girlfriend…WOOF!  January 2013, 160 ish, Size 10.

         

Much better! January 2014 @ 147 lbs. Size 10

House Updates

It’s been a hot minute since I shared any new house stuff. I’ve been in a project drought lately because of the holidays and not having extra time on my hands. However I’ve been itching to do something soon I just haven’t decided what yet. David is shaking in his boots. He just loves my projects! *drips with sarcasm*

Anywho! Here are two things I haven’t shared officially on the blog and figured it was way past due. I’ve also updated the Tour Our Home page.

I painted our bedroom Martha Stewart’s Seal several months ago. I’ll refresh your memory with some before pictures. 

I shared the new color on Instagram.       

Then I tried to take nice pictures for the blog and I noticed something. I did a really shoddy job on the painting. Y’all. I tried to ignore it and chalk it up to the lighting, but there were roller marks all over the wall. I also only did one coat. It needed another. I put everything back and figured I’d live with it and wouldn’t tell David (ha!). Until we were lying in bed one Saturday morning and the sun hit it. And he saw my hack job! I tried to convince him it was his eyes. He didn’t buy it.

Fast forward a few months later and David told me if I didn’t fix the wall I wasn’t allowed to do anything new. It was the first thing I’ve done that he wasn’t happy with. Because I did a half moon pie job. Womp-womp. Understandable. But really? That meant I had to drag everything back out and repaint. I groaned and complained but I fixed it. At least as best I could. I can still see strokes but honestly our drywall sucks too so I’m blaming it on that.

Behold, our dark moody bedroom!

I debated painting over the stencil wall. I really did. Then some folks talked me off the ledge and I figured it’d match enough to not cover up the 48 hours worth of work I put into that darn wall. Yet anyway.

Okay on to the next!

The laundry room.

Before (above), it was functional and pretty.

Then I decided I needed a workspace. And a TV. But the TV didn’t make it. I might actually enjoy emptying and folding the clothes from the dryer if I had one. Hint hint Hubbin!

I took pictures of this transformation but have somehow lost/deleted them. So all you get is an after!

I Googled and Pinterested inexpensive workspace ideas and lo and behold someone smarter than me suggested a $30 hollow door from Lowes. Ding ding ding!

I bought a door and took it to my Dad’s shop to have him help me shorten it a tad.

Then I painted it and shoved it in the space. I separated the washer and dryer first though and made room for a trash can between.

I tried removing that dingy little shelf on the side of the cabinet but it was going to leave a mess to patch up and paint behind so I left it. It makes a nice change collector holder (I’m up to 13 cents!) and a lamp (that’s cute but really not needed).

           I liked the idea of having a curtain and found a pretty shower curtain at Target. I cut it in half and hemmed it to the perfect height. I’ve only done one side so far but I plan to add the other panel so it has more of a ruffled look.

               I love having one big workspace. Unfortunately though it didn’t come with any magic powers that make me want to do laundry.

Oh well!

Friday Five

1.   In the words of Big Al (KKITM), “It’s the weekend baby”! Music to my ears. It’s been a looooong week and I am oh-so-ready for a long weekend!

2.      I’ve come across a delicious discovery. I once shared a greek yogurt cookie dough recipe, but this is just as yummy and skips the prep & ingredients! 

3.      It’s been super chilly this week so I’ve been wearing the heck out of my new workout jacket that the Hubbin got me for Christmas. Lurve.

4.      I bought a pencil skirt on clearance at Target a few months ago. It barely zipped but it was really cute and extremely cheap. So I got it and shoved it in the closet thinking one day I’d fit into it. I remembered I had it and tried it on this week. Not only did it zip easily but I felt great in it! I realize I’m in my bra in this picture and I’m sharing it on the interwebs, but honestly it’s more material than a bathing suit top so I figured it’d be ok to share.

Here’s how I styled it for work. I’m still eating good most of the time and working out consistently three days a week. The scale has barely moved but I continue to see changes in the way my clothes fit.
             

5.       Remi got a bath in the tub last weekend. It was the first time he’d gotten one inside since he was a puppy (it’s usually outside with the hose) but it’s been too cold to do it outside and he desperately needed one. He’s really cute. That’s all!

Friday Five

I’m…

     1. Obsessing over Starbucks Iced Hazelnut Coffee with cream. It’s ridiculously low in calories (for a yummy drink) and cheaper than my beloved fraps. Thanks to a friend for sharing!

2. Loving my new January background wallpaper. A while ago Kate shared about Smashing Magazine Wallpaper. Every month they come out with a new batch of high-res widescreen cute wallpapers and I enjoy picking a new one. I really love this month’s though so it might get to hang out for a little while in February. So cute!

3. Looking forward to Bunko tonight! I really do love to play, eat yummy food (let’s be honest), and hang out with some of my favorite people!

4. Feeling extra pumped about the gym. I’ve only got 5 months until the first official family beach trip of the year. That means 5 months to kick it into high gear in the gym. I have been working hard(er) since the beginning of the year and I hope I can keep it up!

5. Proud to be a Seminole! In case you are living under a rock and hadn’t heard the Florida State Seminoles are the 2013 BCS National Champs and it feels so good! Things weren’t looking too hot for a while though so I had to entertain us while we waited for the situation to get better. Luckily it did. Must have been my special dance moves and that implanted donk!

Monogrammed Rain Jacket

Just like I said I would when I got my PE770, I’m still monogramming all the things!

One of these days I’ll do a round up of some of my favorites but right now I’m sharing my current favorite.

A rain jacket!

My monogrammed initials read tJg by the way…

 

I’ve wanted a monogrammed rain jacket for a while but most shops were selling them for $50+. No thank you. All I needed was to find the right jacket and then I knew I could slap a monogram on it.

 

I bought this raincoat in Tennessee at a Levis outlet for $30. It’s Carhartt brand and is lightweight but has a sturdy outer layer.

I debated between white and silver thread but went with the silver to match the lining and zipper. I love how it turned out!

I also struggled with which way to place the hood monogram…I ultimately went with it being “upright” when the hood is in the down position on my back.

For the hood I only used sticky stabilizer on the back since it was curved and wasn’t the best for hooping.

I’m also loving my tiny Black Friday TV. It makes spending hours in this room much better!

For the chest piece, I used two stabilizers on the back, floated water soluble on top and hooped it. Both methods worked just fine.

I’m still LOVING my machine. It’s been worth every penny!

   

 

Cuteness right?!

Christmas Vacation 2013

Christmas this year was great. The night I got back from TN I went home, kissed my husband and pooches and then we hopped in the car to go out to eat for Mom’s birthday! She’s a Christmas Eve baby and we always celebrate with Mexican.

 

We got home late that night and I set to pack my stuff in the camper because we were taking it for it’s maiden voyage all the way across town to stay at my parents for the week.

Christmas morning we got up, loaded the pooches and we were off!

We parked that baby in the yard and had Christmas with my family.

 

We had such a great time staying over there. Big Momma and Grampy came in Christmas Day and I am so happy we got to be there to hang out. Even though some folks had to work most of the days!

Cole getting towed in by Dad. Whoopsie

 

David and I did manage a few days off from work. We hung out with the fam and played some croquet!

Of course Christmas isn’t complete without not one, but two ice cream runs by Grammy to Publix. Everyone gets their own flavor. That woman is something else. I love her dearly!

There was entirely too much eating done that week but with Grammy in town, it’s inevitable. She is a fabulous cook! She made her famous ronies (macaroni). It’s made up of rigatoni noodles and about 8 gazillion different types of gourmet cheese. It’s Heaven in your mouth. You can’t stop and you won’t stop eating them! Of course there is some major cheese shredding involved. Those ronies are made with love!

We made a trip to Bradley’s Country Store on Sunday and enjoyed a sausage dog, coke from a bottle, some front porch sittin’, and a freaking beautiful day.

Sunday night we played our family’s annual “Game Gift” aka White Elephant. It’s always a good time and only until recent years are the ‘kids’ allowed to play. We had 15 participating this year. Lots of fun!

Back porch fires.

Fun at the Weekley/Woods fire.

New Year’s Eve was spent by the bon fire eating chili. We rang in the stroke of midnight with horns a blowin’!

 

Big dawg.

  

Dad liked my hat.

It was a fabulous Christmas Vacation and I’m so thankful for time spent with family. Here’s to 2014!