Week 34: Back on the Wagon!

Current Weight:  217.6
+/-  this week:  -2.0
+/- this round:   -32.2
+/- total:    -49.6
Current Short Term Goal:  217 (50 pounds lighter)

I finally made it in to town to a meeting after being back on the wagon for a week - counted points for everything I ate and even got a little activity.  It's been a while, but I realized if I want to reach my birthday goal of being under 200 lbs on Nov 23, I needed to start getting serious again.

I was pleased at the scales today - two pounds gone and I'm less than 1/2 a pound away from being down a total of 50 pounds.  Lately everything has been changing, and I am feeling proud of myself for the weight I've already lost.  I often just think about how much is left to go, but the reality is that 50 lbs is nothing to sneer at, is it?

I was talking to some ladies in my book club about running and how I would like to try running, but I don't like how it feels.  They recommended getting some compression gear so I could run with less... movement... I might look into that.  I feel like I would like to do Couch to 5K, so maybe when I get a job I'll invest in some gear and some good shoes.

Well, I am going to sneak in a quick workout before I go over and pick up the boys from my Mom's house.

Starting Weight 1 (Feb 2009):  267 lbs
Starting Weight 2 (Dec 2011):  249.8 lbs
Starting BMI:  41.8

Weight Lost:  49.6 lbs
Goal Weight: 160 lbs
Goal BMI:  25.1

Short Term Goal 1: 237.8 (5%) - Met 1/24/12
Short Term Goal 2: 225.8 (10%) - Met 4/10/12
Short Term Goal 3:  217 (50 pounds down)
Short Term Goal 4: 213.5 (50% of final goal)
Short Term Goal 5:  207 (60 pounds down)
Short Term Goal 6: 199.9 (under 200 for the first time in 7+ years)
Short Term Goal 7: 192 (75 pounds down)
Short Term Goal 8: 189.8 (25% &  no longer "obese")

Long Term Goal: 160 lbs
Total to Lose:  107 lbs
To Go: 57.6 lbs

More Greatness!

The wonderful Deb at A Devonshire Design gave me this award for trying to move my life in a positive direction! I just discovered her blog recently (Thanks, SITS!), and you should go check it out. Thanks, Deb!

There are the rules that go along with accepting this award:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate up to 10 blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude
3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
4. Let them know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received your award.

So, I am now passing this award along to...

Enz at The 4 Walls. She has been reading this blog and encouraging me from the beginning - let's all support her too!

and

Rachel at Journal of a Non-Dieter, who has also been reading and supporting me.

Without their support, and yours, and that of the people at WW, I guarantee you I would not be able to do this.

This Blog is Fab!

At least, that's what Dawn over at Must Love Tots thinks! She bestowed upon me this FABULOUS award:

So exciting! I love it!

So, in order to accept this and to pass it on, I need to list 5 things I'm completely obsessed over and/or addicted to. Fun! So... here is my list.

Fleece Sheets

Someone please explain to me why I had never heard of these until January? I went to visit my Stepmom and she had them on the bed she slept in. Before I flew home, I had a set all packed up in my suitcase. They're on our bed now and both Justin and I love the cozy softness. Awesome!

LOST & Battlestar Galactica

I am totally addicted. I cannot wait to see what happens next every week on both of these shows, and Battlestar is especially enthralling because it's in the final 7 episodes now, and HOW WILL IT END? They HAVE to find a planet, I mean, really they have to. And LOST? Back with a bang. I can't wait to watch it every week and I'm always surprised when it ends because it goes by so fast.

Paperbackswap.com

Have you heard of this?! If you are a reader and book hoarder like me, it is the perfect thing. Mad props to Daisy, who posted a plurk about this, and got me addicted to yet another website. Basically, all you have to do is sign up and add your books. They don't have to be paperbacks, they can be hardcovers or audio books. You list the books you don't need anymore, and other people say they want them. You mail them the books and for each book you mail that someone receives, you get one credit to choose a book someone else has posted. It's awesome! I have used it to get books I had wanted to read for a while, books for my book club, and browsed to find interesting new things to read. You can put ANY book on your wish list, and if it becomes available, it will automatically be held for you for 48 hours until you say if you want it. It's another great way to save money and trade!

Marinated Mozzarella

Okay, well this is obviously going to be short lived because of the new eating plan, but I have been eating a LOT of this lately! Marinated in basil and garlic oil, then I just eat it with slices of baguette. I can still eat it, just in much less quantities. In any case, you should try it because it's heavenly.

Crafts

I have been seriously into some crafty activities lately! Before Christmas I painted and decorated some wooden boxes for my friend's kids and made my own thank you cards with fancy scrapbooking stickers. I did a project recently with Sam's baby blankets- went to goodwill and got some pillows, then used his old baby blankets that are so soft and comfy to cover the pillows. They're on his bed now, and they're great! I just bought stuff the other day to try my hand at doing a mosaic box, and I've been working on some different photo books and making a wedding album for my Mom from her wedding last June. I just love doing these creative things, I'm totally addicted to it lately!

Then I get to pass it along! So... here's to a couple FABULOUS bloggers I love!

Napwarden @ The Chronicles of a SAHM

Carrie @ The Gremlin Wrangler

Auds @ Barking Mad

Aimee @ Greeblemonkey

Oscar Nominations Are Here!

So, Oscar Nominations came out this morning! Woo hoo! I've included a list below of the biggest categories for your reading pleasure, and here are my thoughts on it...

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button came out of it with 13 nominations. That's a lot. The record for number of nominations is a tie - both All About Eve and Titanic had 14 nominations, and they both won Best Picture.
• Milk also had tons of nominations, and Slumdog Millionaire had 10.
• I was surprised that Revolutionary Road only had 3 nominations (Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design) after the number of Golden Globe nominations (and wins) it got. I haven't seen it yet, but I want to.

Movies I am DEFINITELY going to see before the Oscars:

• Doubt
• Milk
• Frost/Nixon
  

And, movies I am going to TRY to see before the Oscars:

• The Visitor (I hadn't heard of this one, but I watched the preview on it's website, and it looks very good)
• Frozen River (I wanted to see this when it was out, but didn't have a chance)
• Rachel Getting Married
• The Wrestler

The first three are already out on DVD, so that will make it more likely I'll actually get to see them!

Below is the list of nominess, and I've highlighted those available on DVD with blue text.

2009 Oscar Nominations

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Richard Jenkins--The Visitor
Frank Langella--Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn--Milk
Brad Pitt--The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke--The Wrestler

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Josh Brolin--Milk
Robert Downey Jr.--Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman--Doubt
Heath Ledger--The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon--Revolutionary Road

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Anne Hathaway--Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie--Changeling
Melissa Leo--Frozen River
Meryl Streep--Doubt
Kate Winslet--The Reader

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Amy Adams--Doubt
Penelope Cruz--Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis--Doubt
Taraji Henson--The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei--The Wrestler

BEST DIRECTOR
David Fincher--The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard--Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant--Milk
Stephen Daldry--The Reader
Danny Boyle--Slumdog Millionaire

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Frozen River
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Milk
Wall-E

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Eric Roth--The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
John Patrick Shanley--Doubt
Peter Morgan--Frost/Nixon
David Hare--The Reader
Simon Beaufoy--Slumdog Millionaire

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
Wall-E

BEST MOTION PICTURE OF THE YEAR
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Who Wouldn't Love an Award?!

Guess what? The lovely Valerie over at It's a Wonderful Life has passed on this beautiful butterfly award to me!


Isn't it pretty? Thanks Valerie!

Here are the steps:

A. Put the logo on your blog.
B. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
C. Nominate ten other blogs, add links to those blogs, and leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

So, here are a few blogs that I've been enjoying lately! Yes, there are only seven. That should be enough reading for you for today (because I really think you should go read them ALL).

• The awesome mind(s) behind Fuck You, Penguin. This award might be too cute for them, but that will only provide me more entertainment.
• The Mammas at Mamarazzi
• Kimberly at Petroville
• Bejewell at The Bean
• McMommy at The McMommy Chronicles
• Tanis at Attack of the Redneck Mommy
• Kelley at Magneto Bold Too
  

AND, since I started writing this post, the wonderful Mimi of Screaming Mimi awarded me with this award:So, here's what it's for...

"This blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and relationships!These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers! Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

I have to admit that one of my favorite parts of this award is that the original giver has identified themselves as CLEVER within the text of their explanation. It just made me laugh!

I like this award because it's one of the things I like most about blogging - meeting new people and making friends. So, here are some ladies who are total winners (and awesome bloggy friends) in my world...

Kori at See Kori Rant

Auds at Barking Mad

Maria at Immoral Matriarch

Shana at Utterances

Maggie at Maggie's Mind

Dawn at Must Love Tots

I decided to only pass this along to six ladies, since I'm still making friends! They inspire me, make me feel less alone, and make me smile.

Scrappy Ladies Unite!

Temple over at Cookies Mean God Loves You tagged me! She passed along this excellent Honest Weblog award! What a sweet lady. First, I'll tell you 10 Honest, Random things about me. Then you can check out Temple and her ten things!

1. Some people pick their cuticles until they bleed, or bite their nails. I pick at my chapped lips. It's a bad habit.

2. Sometimes I don't think we discipline Sam enough, but I don't care that much.

3. I don't believe in the death penalty, I used to, but then one was all over the news and I felt weird about it.

4. I don't eat vegetables in general except for when my best friend forces them on me in her cooking, and I don't mind it.

5. My husband and I talked about getting married within 2 months of when we started dating, but we didn't tell anyone because we were 19 and knew they would think we were crazy. We've now been together for 9 years, married for 5.

6. I don't think the world is as dangerous as people think. I'm not paranoid about germs, I don't disinfect my house or my kids toys every night, and I think that people are generally good.

7. I love some of the people I've met online as much as I love my "real life" friends.

8. I didn't become a Christian until I was 26 years old, and my faith has gotten me through some really hard times in the past year and a half!

9. When I was in middle school, I was totally in love with Jonathan Brandis. I used to have BOP magazine pictures of him all over my bedroom walls and Seaquest DSV was one of my favorite shows.


10. I love the song "Hold On" by Wilson Phillips. Shut up.

Who's next for random honesty? I get to choose 7 blogs to pass the Honesty Torch to that I 'm reading and think you should be reading too, and list them for you to check out....

1. Shannon @ Welcome to the Nuthouse: She is one of the bloggers I discovered through SITS. I love reading about her crazy life as a Mom, and I think the picture in her header really says it all!
2. Scary Mommy: Another new SITS discovery (are you seeing a theme here!?). She is funny and I love her latest post about being starstruck - made me think about those times that make me feel like a middle schooler again!
3. MamaDuckky @ Princesses and Pickles: Another SITSta! Not only is she funny, but she is crafty!
4. Megan @ Newly Wed, Newly Bred: SITSta number four. She is gorgeous, funny, and has a totally adorable little guy.
5. Jaci @ Ravings of a Mad Housewife: I love Jaci! I loved her the minute I clicked to her blog and saw her profile picture. Another SITS discovery!
6. Heather @ Mindless Junque: Okay, I discovered her blog through my Google Reader 'recommendations', then discovered SITS, then realized that she is one of the people who runs it! Which makes her doubly cool.
7. Amy @ Samuel's Mom, Mark's Wife: Amy is one of my "real life" friends - she runs the Mom's group that I'm in and does a terrific job, she watches Sam a couple of days a week, and she's also a really good friend. I am blessed to have her in my life!

Head over and check out their blogs!

Heads or Tails: Shine

This week's Heads or Tails theme is SHINE, which gives me the perfect opportunity to SHINE a light on a few of my most favorite blogging ladies!

The boo-tiful Shana over at Utterances has bestowed upon me my very first ever blog AWARD! How excited am I? I can't really tell you, that's how excited I am! So, of course I am excited to pass the award along and share the bloggy love!
So, on with the ceremony. I would like to pass this award along to...

1. Maria @ Immoral Matriarch - Maria was one of the first people to ever comment on my blog, which of course made my day. She gave me a lot of good advice when it came to re-designing things and cleaning up. Not only that, but she writes her own BRILLIANT blog. Maria is smart, funny, and honest. She recently started up a review blog & an entertainment review blog, which I also enjoy.

2. Auds @ Barking Mad - Auds is just brilliant. She is an amazing writer and an amazing mother. She makes me laugh hysterically and cry at her honesty and the beauty of her words. She has the most gorgeous daughters - Megawatt & the Little Imp, and an adorable Goldendoodle named Casey that I'm totally jealous of.

3. Lotus @ Sarcastic Mom - Lotus makes me laugh. And she has a great rack. And a son with some of the craziest, most gorgeous blue eyes I've ever seen. And sweet skills with a camera.

4. Kori @ See Kori Rant - I love Kori's rants. She reminds me that even when things are crazy and not so great that there is some good stuff out there. Sometimes, it gives me strength to know that I'm not alone in struggling. Sometimes, it gives me strength to see that someone else has been through stuff, and still come out as an amazing woman and a great mother.

5. Loralee @ Loralee's Looney Tunes - Loralee is gorgeous, for one! Seriously. She is also funny, and she rants a lot, which is endearing to me. She's also a twin, which is sort of cool, right?

6. Miss Zoot @ Zoot - I am pretty sure that Miss Zoot has three of THE MOST ADORABLE kids in the entire world. Seriously. Her teenager is not only cute, but just about the best big brother ever. AND he gives book recommendations! Miss Zoot also likes the same kinds of TV and books and movies I do for the most part, and that makes me happy. She is also funny (do you see a theme here? I like to laugh...).

7. Bejewell @ The Bean - I think I actually discovered The Bean through Barking Mad, so there's another reason that Auds rocks. Bejewell is hilarious. She actually managed to do an entire month of NaBloPoMo posts that were entertaining. Seriously, I didn't have to 'mark as read' a single one of them. So check her out.

So to the award winners, here is what you need to do to claim your prize:

1.When received, you may post the Premio to your blog.
2. Link to the blogger you received it from.
3. Give it to 7 bloggers.
4. Link to those 7 blogs.
5. Leave those 7 bloggers a comment about receiving the Brilliante Premio.

To see more Heads or Tails posts, click here!

Life isn't perfect, but it is a gift

October wasn't a very inspirational month for me.  Many days, I've found myself wondering when this string of hardship after hardship will end.  When will the light shine into my life again instead of darkness creeping in with bad news every time I turn around?  As I sifted through all of my saved posts from October looking for one that deserved my nomination for the October Perfect Post awards, I only came across a few that felt inspiring to me here and now.  There were celebrations of babies being born, there were many that made me laugh, and many full of wonderful and beautiful writing.  But when I re-read the post I finally settled on, it made me remember why despite everything that's happened, I can still see a beautiful sunset at night and feel okay.

My Perfect Post choice for October goes to Sarah at Redefining Perfect.   I've been reading Sarah's blog for a while, and she often has wonderful things to say.  But in this post in particular, she reminds me why we should ALL treasure every single moment we have.  Sarah reminded me that no matter how hard I feel things are, there is always someone else who is going through something unthinkable.  No matter how many bills I have that I can't pay, or people I know who are sick or have died there are others out there who were even closer to those people.  I have my family.  I have friends.  I have my health.  I have a roof over my head and food to eat.  Even the title of Sarah's blog, Redefining Perfect, makes sense here.  My life may not feel perfect, but when I look at what matters, what more could I really ask for?

Instead of living in sadness and wishing for things we didn't have, we should embrace what we do have and remember that we don't know how much time we have left, so we should treasure the moments we have RIGHT NOW, while they're happening.  Forget regret and envy, they are a waste of time.  Find the good in what is around you right now.

Thanks to Sarah for reminding me of that.  For more perfect posts, visit Kimberly at Petroville or Lindsay at Suburban Turmoil.   

Perfectly In Love

That's right folks, it's that time of the month again for our Perfect Posts to get the recognition they deserve! I'm really glad to have participated last month, and to continue until the end of the year. 2008 will be the last year for the perfect post awards, and in January we have something AMAZING to look forward to when Lindsay and Kimberly will hold a special award where we can choose our overall perfect post. What a difficult task that will be - it's hard enough just choosing each month!

This month, I'd like to award the perfect post award to Casey at Moosh in Indy for this post about her husband, Cody. Here's one of my favorite parts...

"I was always cautious about admitting how in love with my husband I was. From the moment I met him. I knew people were watching us, waiting for us to fail. As the years passed by I still never proclaimed my love for him openly. When in reality I would squee internally every time his truck pulled up. Or every night when he would reach over to pull me close to him as we fell asleep."

Casey and Cody met young, fell in love quickly and married young. I can related to her. I met my husband when I was only 18 years old, we talked about getting married within a few months. But of course, we NEVER told anyone! They would have thought we were crazy. But we both knew we'd found the one. This December will be 9 years together with us, and even with everything we've been through this year, I find our relationship as strong as ever.

I loved Casey's post for a lot of reasons. Because I could feel her love for Cody, and the smile she must have been wearing as she wrote it. Because she shared something that showed that Cody feels the same way, and that kind of bond is just amazing. I always love hearing stories from people who got together young, knew they were going to be together - and are still in love years later. People can be so cynical in this world about relationships, love, and staying power, but there are TONS of success stories just like Casey's out there. It's truly inspiring.

So, for making me smile, and for making me think about the love I have for my husband, here's to Casey and her post. For me, it was perfect.

To see more perfect post winners, head over to Suburban Turmoil or Petroville!

Perfect Post: Palin & Getting Played

You may have heard of the Perfect Post Awards. They happen once a month, and are hosted at Petroville and Suburban Tumoil. For the past few months I've read the award winning posts every month, been touched, laughed, and been brought to tears many a time. Recently I came across a post encouraging people to sign up to be part of the Perfect Post list, and I decided I should participate!

The only thing I didn't realize is how HARD it would be to look back through a month of my favorite posts and try to pick just one to make the award. As I sit here writing my introduction to this post, I have 5 tabs open and still haven't picked my winner.

For August, I've decided that my award for perfect post will go to Candace at Not That I Don't Love My Kids... for this post. Since the political season is REALLY beginning now and I've been thinking about it a lot and developing a lot of feelings, I felt it appropriate to nominate Candace for speaking her mind in a very concise manner. I haven't written much about politics on my blog recently, although it's sure to happen over the next several months. Sometimes it's hard to make your argument in a smart way, to get your feelings across without sounding defensive, bitchy or just yelling "It's WRONG!", which happens to me sometimes. By Candace managed to do just that in her post.

I too, felt something unsettling and indescribable to myself when I heard that John McCain and the Republicans had gone with Sarah Palin as their Vice Presidential nominee. I saw the picture of McCain and Palin side by side and it just seemed... off. Weird. Not quite right. Not long afterwards, I came across Candace's post, and it made complete sense to me. Her anger rang true to me...

"And now I'm angry. Because I feel used. And I think Sarah Palin should be angry too. Because she's being used too. And I think all the other "guys" who were up for the job should be angry too. Because they were played just like we're being played and it makes me feel robbed of my voice in the trickiest of ways. Because he did the ole swithcherooni in the name of knowing what I think, what I feel. Because after all, don't we all just want a vagina in the White House? Is that for the good of the country or for the good of his own agenda?"


Let's take Candace's words to heart, and not get played.


To view the other Perfect Post winners for August, click over to Petroville or Suburban Turmoil!