Great Reading

I'm just full of articles today! I guess you can say that I have been reading a lot of helpful information lately...ranging from budgeting to dieting, exercise and everything in between.

A few moments ago, I read this article on Yahoo that talks about food that can help flatten your tummy! It has some great tips on what food and snacks actually help you burn away the fat! Good news for me is that I like all the food listed!!!!

then, after discussing our kitchen staples several weeks ago, I found this article talking about kitchen staples for trying to feed your family on a budget. Several of the items were several listed on blog comments and such, but I thought I would still share.

Why did the Turtle Cross the Road...

...to go to the doctor!!!

I just read this story and it CRACKED me up!!!! This sea turtle SWAM to a hospital in the Florida keys. Apparently, the poor guy knew he was sick and knew exactly where to go - the doctor! Aren't animals amazing????

Extreme Hair Makeover

I know - I told you several weeks ago that I had pictures to show you of my new hair cut...but I keep failing to post them....But I have finally remembered!

So here is the picture from about 3 weeks ago the night that Sherry was cutting my hair. Sherry is Jessica's mom, so this is me and Jess!

Then here are the pictures of my new hair!!! I LOVE my short hair!!! What do you think?

Many Thanks

Oh dear blogging friends, thank you so very, very much for your support and encouragement yesterday! As soon as I got home yesterday, Brant and I decided to head up to the new Lifetime fitness by our house. We had a tour and fell in love! We both joined and can't wait to begin exercising and working out together.
Amanda and Michael are already members, so sister and I met up there at 6 this morning and did some cardio for an hour, then sat in the sauna for a few minutes! It was a great start for the morning. I fell like I have so much energy today! Now - if I can just kick my addition to CFA sweet tea!

As for my treats, I loved the idea several of you had to treat myself every 10 lbs. Since my goal is to lose 30, then that would be three treats!!! So here they are:

First 10 lost - Pedicure
Second 10 lost - New pair of Shoes
Third 10 lost - 1 Hour Massage!!!

I have asked Brant to set a goal too. So he and I are thinking about what kind of treat we want if we BOTH meet our goals! I'll let you know as soon as we make a decision.

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Today at our office, a team from our insurance company came in and did a special meeting called "Know Your Numbers" about the importance of knowing your cholesterol, blood sugar, blood pressure, BMI and body fat %. After the meeting, the took you measurements and got your numbers for you, and of course explained what all of your numbers meant. In the grand scheme of losing weight and becoming more healthy, it is so important to knows these numbers so you can measure your success in multiple ways - not just on the scale, or by your clothes.

Well the good news is that my cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure are all at great levels. I could of course increase my HDL (the good cholesterol - or Drano for your blood vessels if you will), but it is still at a good number.

However, the bad is that my body fat % is high. The average (or healthy range) for a female my age is between 14-23%. I however, am over 30!

The ugly is of course my BMI! As embarassed as I am to share this, I will simply because I know that in doing so, I will pumped to share with you again at the end of my 20/20 challenge. So, (blushin) my BMI is 29.8. This is .2 points away from being considered obese - completely different from being overweight. Literally, I tell you this with tears stinging my eyes because never in my life have I been as big as I now...and I don't even remember how I got here. I got married, I guess...but I know that it still isn't an excuse.

A dear and precious friend of mine names Melissa just got engaged and she has asked me to be a bridesmaid in her wedding. I, of course, gladly accepted the invitation, yet knew that I would not be the same person in her wedding that I am today. Luckily, her wedding is not until August of 2010 (her fiance needs to first finish his first year of law school); therefore, I have the same amount of time to take the weight off as I did putting it on!

So, the ultimate challenge is to lose 30 lbs by the end of 2009, and keep the weight off through August 2010.

I have NO doubt in my mind that this is completely acheiveable, but I will tell you now that I desperately need accountability. My sister is a member of Lifetime Fitness and has been begging me to join her. Finally this week, I asked Brant if I could join and he of course told me yes. To make things even better, my sister actually AGREED to get up with me and workout at 5:30 AM (on the mornings that Michale is home to watch the babies that is)!!!! What a sister!!!!

So I begin this journey of weight loss...but I need a treat - something to set myself in motion. What do you think my treat should be????

This picture was taken by my sister last night. This is Brant and I - both at our biggest.



These are pictures of Brant and I when we first started dating. We were both much, much smaller in size. (FYI - I am one the farthest to the left in the pic of the girls.) I am going to put these pictures of us one my refrigerator as a reminder to both of us that we HAVE to lose weight and keep ourselves healthy.

Movies

Anyone who knows my husband knows that the man LOVES movies. He can watch ANY movies and enjoy it - even if its a bad movie. So today, I thought of him when I saw this article on Yahoo.com. It is Yahoo's 100 Movies to See Before You Die!

I read through all of the different movies it names and there are definitely some that I have no clue about, but some truly are all-time classic movies like:

• The Wizard of Oz
• The Sound of Music
• The Shawshank Redemption
• Schindler's List
• Lord of the Rings
• The Godfather (I and II)
• Casablanca
• Its a Wonderful Life

Then there were some that surprised me, like:

• Groundhog Day
• Jaws
• Titanic
• The Matrix
• Toy Story

If it were my list, I would add some of my personal favorites like:

• Steel Magnolias (Yes, I can quote almost the entire things!)
• Gone with the Wind (I was devastated this wasn't on the list)
• Twister (Love this movie)
• French Kiss ( Hello, I jut flew over an ocean!!!)
• Hairspray (2007) - I can watch this over and over!
• My Fair Lady - GREAT classic!

So, the question of the day becomes: If you could make a list of your favorite movies to see before you die, what would be on the list????

20/20 Challenge

So Tricia posted about a great challenge Ashlee has started called the 20/20 Challenge - a challenge to lose 20 lbs in 20 weeks! So, I have officially signed up!!!!

I am really excited about the challenge and can't wait to report the progress. If you are interested, check out Ashlee's blog. She has an amazing story of how she is only 23 years old and in the past 21 months, has managed to go from 252 lbs to 173!!! Talk about INSPIRATION!!! She has great tips on how to eat, work out and change your life style to fit YOU!!!

20/20 Challenge - LET'S GET TO WORK!!!

Spring Reading

ALREADY CHANGED THE LIST!!!! UPDATE:
Well, I have already finished The Broker, but instead of going on to Spencerville, I am now reading Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Brant is on the last few days of writing his paper on C.S. Lewis and was telling me this morning how much he has truly enjoyed reading all of the Chronicles stories. He has seen the "Prince Caspian", the movie, but I have not; yet, as luck would have it, we have it in our home this very moment thanks to Netflix. So, I immediately started reading it this morning and hope to finish by late this afternoon so that we can watch the movie this evening...So, that means that Prince Caspian has now been added to the list!!


I read Tricia's blog this mornng and Callapidder Days is hostng Spring Reading Thing 2009!!! Here is how it works:
1) Make a list of books you want to read (or finish reading) this spring. Your list can be as long or as short as you’d like. (Also, feel free to modify your list during the challenge if it’s not working for you.)
2) Write a blog post containing your list and submit it to this post using the Mr. Linky (on Callapidder Days).
3) Get reading! The challenge goes from March 20th through June 20th.
4) Check out other participants’ lists and add to your own to-read-someday pile!
5) Write a post about your challenge experience in June, telling us all about whether you reached your goals and how the Spring Reading Thing went for you. Oh, and if you don’t finish your books, or if you change your list half-way through, or if you only read two books…it’s OKAY. This is a low-pressure challenge that should be fun. As long as you do some reading this spring (and enjoy it!), that’s good enough for me.

So here is Grabbie's list:

1. The Broker - John Grisham FINISHED
   
2. Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian - C.S. Lewis
3. Spencerville - Nelsen DeVille
4. Family - Karen Kingsbury
5. Forever - Karen Kingsbury (sequal the follows Family)
6. The King of Torts - John Grisham
7. The Faithyful Spy - Alex Berenson
8. The Ragamuffin Gospel - Brennan Manning
9. The Last Juror - John Grisham
10. Powerful Promises for Every Couple - Jim & Elizabeth George

So this is my list, obvioulsy with the last book not yet determined. I have included some fiction and non-fiction because I truly love to read both. However, I am forwarning you that al the directions allow, I might be changing my list after I read other people's lists. I hope you will join in the fun. I can't wait to post in June and discuss our readings!!

Happy Spring Reading Thing 2009!!!!!!!!

Count Your Blessings

Today, Kelly posted about praising the Lord for all of His blessings, and I thought it was a fantastic reminder of how blessed we truly are. So, I decided to follow the trend and post on blessings as well.

Today, I am thankful for:
*FAMILY - I have an amazing husband who loves (and adores) me (or at least some of the time he does! Haha). I have a sister who, in the past 5 or so years has literally become one of my best friends. I have a mom and dad who love and support me!

*FRIENDS - I have a some of the best girlfriends a girl could ask for! They are there to laugh with, and are the to lend a shoulder to cry on when its needed! We love together, smile together, laugh together, and even sob together!

*My HOUSE - the Lord has truly blessed Brant and I with the financial stability to buy a house right before we were married. It may not be the biggest house on the block, but it is our house and we love it. I can't wait to begin raising a family in it!

*JOBS - Brant and I have both been blessed with jobs we LOVE! I cannot imagine still working for my previous employer and continuing to be miserable there. I love my job, I love what I do, and I love the people I

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work with (sometimes!). My husband loves his job too! He is doing what he is passionate about, and gets to continue his education while doing it, not to mention gets to go to sporting events for FREE!

*HIS TRUTH - I am blessed because I know that my Father loves me and has my entire life planned out for me! I don't have to worry about tomorrow because I know who holds my future. I can leave at peace because I know there is no person, no force, no thing that can EVER tear me away from my Father's grip! And that is the BEST blessing of all!!!

Savory Salads

I'm terribly sorry its been awhile since I posted. But today, I am browsing the internet looking at some savory salads for Bunco Thursday night. I'm the host this month. In our group, the hosts fixes dinner, then buys the gifts for the winners. So, I was purusing for a delicious salad full of fabulous ingridients to go along with our baked potatoes.

Here are a few of my favorites. Which one do you think I should make?????

Jamie's Cranberry Spinach Salad

Missy's Candied Walnut Gorgonzaola Salad

Frech Broccoli Salad

Apple Avacado Salad with Tangerine Dressing

Lemon Artichoke Romain Salad

Recession Fashion

Well Kelly is hosting a "Recession Fashion" party today about dressing for under $30. So, I just thought I would add in my two cents!

For most of my bargain shopping, I love to go to online outlets! Some of my favorites are Coldwater Creek, Old Navy, and New York & Co. I have gotten some GREAT bargains here! I typically get some AWESOME deals with New York & Co. because I have one of their credit cards which automatically come with 20% off coupons. I can honestly tell you that I have NEVER paid full price for anything in this store because they are always having sales and emailing coupons. This is a wonderful place to shop.

Right now, this shirt is only $14.99!

This dress is only $23.47

And this blouse is only $7.99!!!

For shoes, I love Marshalls. I have found some great deals here too...including deals on Nine West, Steve Maddens, Anne Kliens, Bandalinos...and so many more!

For accessorices, I, of course love Brighton jewelry, but for more costume and stone jewelry, I love Sam Moon. A few Saturdays ago, Sister and I went to Sam Moon and I got this set for less than $13.00!!! (and for those of you who don't live in the DFW area and don't know what Sam Moon is...I'm sorry!)

And got this chocker set for only $8.00...

And then got this chocker set for $14.00

And for those of you who read yesterday's post, I am feeling much better this afternoon. I continued to have a high fever all day yesterday and it was still 101 this morning. But finally around 1 this afternoon, my fever finally broke and now I am feeling so much better. I hope to be back at work tomorrow. But this week is Spring Break at DBU, so all staff gets to have a day off. Brant had put in his day off for today, so has been home to take care of me, although he is really trying to work on his paper. He is taking a C.S. Lewis class and has to write a 10 page paper by the 23rd. Can you see he is hard at work?

What I'm Doing Today

Yes, it has een a little while since I posted, and I am terribly sorry because I do have something great to share with you (an extreme hair makeover, but I don't have any good pics yet.) But anyways, today I am at home watching this:

wishing I could win this:

while I'm eating these:

Yes - I'm eating saltines and trying to keep them down. Apparently I caught a stomach bug from my mom and it hasn't been pretty. So I stayed home for work today and hope to be feeling better by tomorrow. But Sister has been amazing and brought me some Chick Fil A sweet tea - thanks sis! So what are you doing today?

I'm Peeved

Ok, for all those who are peeved at Jason, take a look at this website. Melissa was telling me about it this morning, so I read it for over an hour!!! See for yourselves and let me know what you think!!! Take a look at Reality Steve.


Oh, and by the way, I have had several emails asking for pictures of my kitchen project, and I HATE to disappoint, but it didn't get finished...let alone started. I ended up having to work some over the weekend, then when I went shopping to get the stuff to complete my project, I couldn't find them...so the project has been put on the back-burner for now. I actually hope to have it completed by the end of the month!

Prayer Warriors

I was just reading Kelly's Korner this morning and clicked on the link at the bottom. This precious family is letting go of their daughter, Gracie, today. Please pray for them, their heartache, their sorrow, their three other children that today, had to say "goodbye" to their baby sister. My heart is just aching for them.