Healthier Me, Healthier Family: Week 4&5- Losing on the scales winning in life

How did I do?
The last two weeks have been blah weeks. Week 4 weigh in I did not loose, still at 181. This week's weigh in, I gained 2 pounds so I am back at 183. I ate right last week (except for date night) and I exercised more than ever.

The Journey:
So, I follow the plan and where does that get me, 2 pounds heavier and 4 pounds from where I wanted to be. Big old frowny face. But in my defense, last week was an emotional week. Kohl is not meeting his target weights either (0pposite problem though). So, I have had to change the schedule feedings and bottle supplements to cluster feedings and feeding on demand. The boy has a high metabolism!

Another change was the big meal in the middle of the day. Although this may work for some I found myself eating 2 big meals a day and never really making the transition. Does this mean I packed on the calories?

Along with that, we are starting to feel the pinch of a 1 income family, and a child hitting puberty. Not a very emotionally fit week. The week before, I think my give a crap broke, so I was just going through the motions.

Lessons learned over the last 2 weeks were, if you want it to happen you have to give a crap, and it is as much of an emotional journey as it is a getting healthy physically.

This Week's Goal:
Weight/ inches: Loose the 2 pounds I gained putting me back at 181 and seeing the 170's before the end of February. I measured in this week, and hoping to loose 2 inches a month, total!

Exercise: Keep focused, 3 videos a week (2 yoga, 1 aerobic/strength) Continue to walk 3/4 a mile daily.

Food: Another vegetarian week, with salads, wraps, and Spanish rice as the focus. Staple food: Black beans and avacados!

Motto: Keep a smile on your face, and avoid the "nots" in life....

Healthier Me, Healthier Family: Week 3- Picking Up and Running With it

How did I do?
This week with everything crawling back into a normal schedule, and making sure I added yoga and walking everyday. I feel success. My Monday weigh in was 181 pounds. 30 Pounds to go for my first goal. Two pounds to loose this week to meet my beginning February goal. If I can keep this up, I will reach my goal for the end of the year in 15 weeks. I feel a small sense of success!

The Journey:
After last week's flop of eating and not exercising, I decided to be more committed to the plan. Also Morvin has decided to step in as my gentle trainer. He goes with me on walks to make sure I get the "full walk in." I am walking about 3/4 of a mile a day at this point, doing yoga 2 times a week. (I need to do it today) and trying to work in a boot camp or aerobic exercise at least once a week. Thank you NetFlix.

I have learned that if I do all of this I can still satisfy my sweet tooth in moderation. I have also boycotted making sweet tea and keeping around the house, because then I am the one to drink most of it.

Now, back to organization... I am still not organized, my brain is scattered and my kids pick up on it and knock me down when I am the most weak. On that note, I feel that I have too much on my plate, so I am going to start this week with organizing my tasks.

This Week's Goal:
Weight: See the 170's by loosing 2 pounds.

Exercise: Keep focused, 3 videos a week (2 yoga, 1 aerobic/strength) Continue to walk 3/4 a mile daily.

Food: Trying to have the big meal at the middle of the day, that way I am not going to bed with a heavy meal on my stomach.

Motto: Keep it simple, Don't make any task harder than it should be!

Healthier Me, Healthier Family: Week 2- Dropping the Ball

How did I do?

This week was not a complete failure, but it wasn't a success either. I managed to loose just 1 pound, Weighing in at 183 pounds. However, to be perfectly honest I did not really try and my coach did not push me too hard either.

The Journey:
Last Monday, I was all Gung Ho about this journey. I got the house cleaned, stuff organized, I should be done, Right? Wrong! This week I learned about maintenance, and that it has to be there.

Well, keeping things organized was hard. By Friday I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off, and didn't do my walking. Saturday, I celebrated my oldest turning 12 and spent most of my day tasting frosting, eating pizza, and a full slice of cake and icecream. Then to top it off, no walk on Saturday either. Guess I should be proud that I lost 1 pound instead of gaining 5!

I learned this week that if I want to loose 2 pounds a week that I will have to WORK at it. I will have to pay attention to what I eat as well as make sure that I get the exercise in DAILY! I learned that maintaining the daily life style is work and keeping focused and organized is essential.

Goals and Plans:
Weight: Loose 2 or more pounds.

Exercise: Do a double lap on the road increasing walk from half mile to 3/4 mile and do yoga 2 times this week.

Food: Watch calories taken in, eat when hungry, eliminate mindless snacking with drinking water.

Motto: You can do this and more. Push your self to the limit so you can SOAR!

Wayne: A Reflection about a Super Young Man

There is a very special young man in my life. He has been with me longer than anyone else in this family. His birthday was January 14, and I am writing this for him. He has just turned 12 and has brought nothing but joy in my life since the day he was born.

Who is this young man? Well, he is the infant who liked to be held and loved quiet places. He is the supreme artist who started his career at age 2. He is the preschooler who thought deep but struggled to communicate his thoughts. He is the first grader who told me I needed to find a prince and could use his birthday money to buy one at the prince store. He has gone through some radical hair styles to include green mohawks. He is the one person I can count on to try to please me. Mr. Wayne Walker is a smart young man who can always see the best in people and is always caring about others. Even though he has had his struggles, he continues to try.

Through this last year of his life he has managed to handle changes and challenges like a pro. With a change in school environments, he is now soaring with his academics and is learning about life as well.

Although he will always be my baby boy, I cannot wait to see who this young man will grow up to be. I am very proud to say Wayne is my son!

Healthier Me, Healthier Family: Week 1- Letting Go

Have you ever made goals to make a positive change in your life, but then not be willing to make the sacrifices needed to reach that goal because of emotional reasons? This has been my struggle with weight loss throughout the years. I am not a clothes person, but each item in my wardrobe has a story and is hard to get rid of keeping me from getting rid of my "big" pants or hurting my feelings when I have to wear the "skinnier" pants because of the bad story that went with them. So here I am at the beginning of my weight loss adventure again. The baby is born. The time is right, and I FINALLY started off lighter than I started before pregnancy. This is my pre-pregnancy picture, I will try to get a picture for next weeks journey. Yes, I know it is horrible!

The Beginning: Where I am starting
Kohl is now 6 weeks old, I am officially starting my weight loss journey this week. My Monday weigh in was 184 lbs. This starts my journey at 12 lbs lighter than I was pre-pregnancy. The ultimate goal is to be under 150 lbs by the end of December or in a size 10.

This Week's Journey:
Over the weekend, I took the first emotional step to this journey. I tried on every piece of clothing I owned. If it fit right, looked good, and had no story it was kept. If it did not look right, fit, or had a bad story, into the give away bin it went. I even used my husband as the test of look right. Yes, ladies, I asked his honest opinion, then looked closely at him to see how honest he was being! Being nice and saying, "It looks ok." is honest, but not brutally honest. So, I watched his eyes. And I am happy to say in all my old clothes, I have some "eye popping" outfits!

This week I learned, that this healthier me is not just going to be about the food and movement, but also about the ridding myself of the negative.

This Week's Goal:
Journey: Continue to purge as I work on organizing the house. I figure if I can keep the house organized, then maybe my life will be more organized and I will be a little happier.
Food: Vegetarian (mostly): Big meal- Egg Plant Parmesan, without frying the egg plant. Not the healthiest but the majority of the week is salad and items that revolve around black beans and avocado.
Exercise: Walk the drive daily (if raining a 30 minute Netflix work out)
Weight: Down 2 more pounds (182), I want to be 179 by Feb1.

Why wasn't I given June Cleaver's Writers?

As I reflect on the last 3 weeks, I have noticed that the writers of June Cleaver's life was not assigned to me.

My life right now revolves around the feeding schedule of a very young infant. When I am not in the middle of feeding our new baby, Kohl, I am trying my hardest to keep up with the house and feeding the other children.

June's writers keep her house immaculate while her children never make messes or talk back. My writers have given me an adventurous boy, who has NO organizational skills, and a very curious toddler whose hero is Curious George. A clean organized house in only a dream in my sitcom.

June is able to pull a gourmet feast out of her oven just as her husband walks in the door. I am lucky to be able to pull a frozen dinner out of the oven warmed all the through these last few days.

June's hair and make up is perfect from the time she wakes until she goes to bed. She is comfortable in heels and a dress. You could not stuff me in a dress, and well when the hell am I supposed to be all dolled up when a shower and brushing my teeth seem like luxuries?

All of this has led me to the conclusion that my writer's have failed me or I am not an average woman but some type of super hero. I spend 1/2 my day feeding a newborn (or pumping). I also manage to keep laundry clean, play Candyland with a toddler, encourage and keep our prepubescent son on a schedule, and feed my family 3 meals a day.

At the end of each day, I have managed to do 3 times as much as June in a whole season. And yet, still there is always another mess to clean or meal to prepare. This holiday season, we managed along with the welcoming of 2 new family members (Kohl and a puppy) to host Christmas with the extended family, make homemade ornaments, start new traditions and make gifts for each other.

Writers and Producers for June Cleaver and Martha Stewart, move over there is a new breed of mother out there. She may over look the details and all the crafts may be lop sided, but she does everything with love. Where she falls short, she makes plans to improve. She is the new ring master of her three ring circus performing miracles daily and yet being able to do it with out Valium.
Many thanks to the friends who have called me a Super Woman! In my quest to find June Cleaver, I have learned that I am stronger, more passionate, and freer than June Cleaver, and through all the struggles to be a modern woman, I have found that the roots of our society and being a great Mom and Wife is where it starts. I have a career as an educator and choose to educate my children first and focus on their needs!

Mommy's Project 52: 11 Rewarding

I know I should have some pretty pictures for this post, and some cool Mommy blog about how rewarding it is to be a mommy and it is. It is an everyday rewarding that I am grateful to have.

However, I can think of so many other rewarding things that are happening to friends and family. We have a friend who is having problems with her pregnancy, and it is rewarding to know that she is able to hang in there just a little bit longer, despite how hard it is to sit in the hospital and wait. Although for her it is frustrating to have to wait, and follow the rules of bedrest, she is doing what is best for her little girl who we hope can make a healthy appearance into the world.

Another rewarding experience, is that of seeing a young adult grow their wings and learn to fly on their own. We are getting to observe this first hand as my younger brother in law is finding his new career to be a positive experience, and has rented a room in house (someone else's). He will soon be learning to be responsible for himself and how to be completely independent.

So yes, me bringing life into the world. Enjoying seeing my children discover the world, and feeling the youngest move around inside me fills me with a rewarding life. But seeing the success for others, is also rewarding and its fun to cheer them on!