Life threw me another curveball...

and her name is Lauren.  She is now 3 months old and one of the joys of our lives.

After losing 55 lbs on WW, I learned that I was pregnant with the second child I thought I'd never have.  Lauren joined our family 9/26/11.  Food, especially carbs helped me to curb the nausea I felt through the first 5 months of pregnancy.  Along with a beautiful baby girl, I have 30+ regained pounds to lose.  I've used breastfeeding as my excuse to not lose more baby weight.  No more excuses!!

I am starting 2012 determined to lose the weight I gained and some of the weight that I didn't get around to losing before I got pregnant.  I CAN do this and I WILL do this.  2012 will be my year to lose!

My husband has ordered an elliptical.  It will be here in the next week or so.  It should be fun to put together!  I really look forward to using it!

Just when I think I know what I'm doing...

WW goes and changes everything on me!!!!  Ugh!  I've been on WW for the last 6 months and Weight Watchers has changed things from the Momentum Plan to Points Plus. 

Yes, I truly believe that the Point Plus plan is healthier for me, but I have to relearn everything!  None of my favorite foods calculate out the same!  My daily oatmeal at work went from 2 points to 3 Points Plus.  The 1 point wraps I use for lunch are now 3 Points Plus. 

I like that fruits and most veggies are now Point Plus FREE foods. 

It will take me time to work out the details of the new plan and make it work for me, but in the meantime, I'll do my best and enjoy the changes of the new plan.  Off to figure out how many Points Plus tonight's pizza was!

I'm thankful

This Thanksgiving, I have so many things in life to be thankful for.  I decided to copy my friend Jules and compile a list of what I am truly thankful for.

1.  My spouse--Truly Martin is the best husband I could ask for.
2.  My beautiful daughter--she brings such joy to my life.  I love watching her interactions and  thought processes.
3.  My pets--Mage has been a blessing to us for the last 7 years.  Our cats, Midnight and Stripey, also bring us joy.
4.  A job I enjoy that I get paid well to do.
5.  Our perfect home.  We are very blessed to have found this house!
6.  A craft that I enjoy--Scrapbooking
7.  Friends from afar that I've made because of scrapping!
8.  Weight Watchers--I've managed to take off over 50 lbs and learn to make myself healthier
9.  Exercise--I have a love hate relationship with exercise, but I'm able to move and make myself healthier.
10.  My best friend--Heidi, I love you!  I'm so thankful that we've become friends.
11.  My new van!  I love it!  We'll have a lot of adventures in it.  :-)
12.  Friends--new and old alike.  Having lived in 3 different areas in the last 8 years, I've made some great friends. 
13.  My health--for needing to lose over 100 lbs, my health hasn't been too bad.
14.  My allergist--Dr. Lazar has been a miracle worker getting my allergies under control.  I no longer have asthma attacks.
15.  Having my parents nearby--they are a great help and I enjoy spending time with them.
16.  My sister--she's not only a sister, but also a friend
17.  Coupons--Okay, so I'm addicted to saving money
18.  Money saving blogs--They really help me stretch a dollar.
19.  The internet--I've learned so much and made such great friends because of the internet.
20.  Grandparents--I'm thankful that I have 2 grandmas still living and had 2 grandpas until I was an adult.

I'm very blessed!

6 pics card

Family Wall Red Christmas Card

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A Great Way to Show off my Weight Loss!

Shutterfly has made it really easy to show off my weight loss to friends and family that we don't see often!  I can only imagine what people will think when they open the mail and see our family photo.  Kaylee has really grown up in the last year and I've really shrunk!  55 lbs down is something to show off and I'm sure to find the perfect design through Shutterfly.   I really love the designs available in the pre-designed Christmas cards available through Shutterfly!  They have everything from simple and classic to whimsical.  Designing our card was a lot of fun.  Agreeing with my spouse on a card, not so much!

You can choose a card with multiple photos or go with a singe photo layout.  They have folding cards, stationary cards, as well as traditional photo cards!  The possibilities are endless!  Here are a few of my creations:








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Where did October go??

I can't believe it's already November.  I didn't blog for an entire month, but then again that might show my lack of weight loss and motivation.

I didn't make it to Weight Watchers meeting for 2 weeks in a row.  The first week, Kaylee had strep throat and I had no one to watch her.  The second week, I was in Grand Rapids buying a new (to me) mini-van. 

I haven't done well meeting my goals lately.  I have to refresh myself.  Here's my goal check-in:

1-I have a goal of by Thanksgiving having lost 60 lbs total. 
      Um, Not gonna happen... I'd have to lose almost 10 lbs in 3 weeks.  Maybe I should aim for 55 lbs total!
2-I have a goal to exercise 3-4 days a week for at least 45 minutes each
      Getting dark earlier has prevented me from taking nightly walks.  I don't feel right walking alone in the dark.   I do enjoy taking walks alone.  I find that I work myself harder using the treadmill or the exercise bike and I can't go as long.  I'm going to amend this goal to 25-30 minutes a day for 3-4 days a week.
3-I have a goal to try at least one new WW recipe a week.
     I've tried a few new recipes, not once a week, but once every other week.  The WW Enchilada Meatloaf recipe was a total hit and will be in our regular rotation.
4-I have a goal to learn to look at myself as someone other than the fat girl I see in the mirror.
     I'm still working on this one.  I'm starting to see the changes in my body.  I have a waist??  A new outfit goes a long ways towards bringing on the confidence.

Goals--September 24th Version

I realized today that I need to set some goals for myself.  I've been kind of lost since I met my 10% goal a month and a half ago.  I have no goals.  I have no goals set, nothing to look forward to...

So here I go.

1-I have a goal of by Thanksgiving having lost 60 lbs total.
2-I have a goal to exercise 3-4 days a week for at least 45 minutes each
3-I have a goal to try at least one new WW recipe a week.
4-I have a goal to learn to look t myself as someone other than the fat girl I see in the mirror.

Goal#1 involves losing another 15 lb in a little over 2 months.  Totally doable if I get back on plan.
Goal#2 will help me meet goal #1. 
Goal #3--I'm getting bored with the same old, same old.
Goal #4--I had a work friend tell me that I'm too hard on myself.  People tell me I'm looking good but all I can see is the chunky girl with flabby thighs.  I think this will be the hardest goal to meet!   Wish me luck!