10 on Tuesday

1. The Relay for Life is this weekend. There is still time to donate. I just need $80 to get to my goal. Just click on the link.

2. Healthy You Challenge Check In: I'm not sure if I need to keep putting this on here, because I blog about how I'm doing throughout the week. I'm doing really well this week. I did great on the weekend and managed to lose. I maintained on Friday's weigh in but have lost since.

3. I'm so tired of whining!!!!!!!!!!

4. All of the excuses are driving me nuts. I'm so sick of people asking me what I'm doing to lose weight only for me to answer and have them give me some random excuse as to why they couldn't do that. ug! If you aren't willing to change, then don't expect your body to change.

5. Courtney's Kindergarten Celebration is this morning. I can't wait. They are performing for us. One of the songs is a High School Musical song. Courtney has been practicing it. She already knew a lot of it so she had an advantage of learning it. I can't wait. She also will be getting her "Go For The Gold" award. These are things for the kindergartners to reach for to try to achieve in during the kinder school year. Courtney has been done with it for months. I'm so proud of her.

6. We found out that Scott and my cousin Bryan will be coaching Skyler's and Madi's soccer team in the fall. How exciting. It will be fun to be on the same team as her cousin. And fun hanging out during the games for us too. :)

7. It felt liberating sharing my size with whomever reads this. I just might share my weight once I reach the next big goal. I have to hit 2 smaller ones before that one, but all 3 are so close.

8. My kids go through a lot of paper. They love to color and paint. My in laws just gave us a box of 5 reams of paper! HUGE score! :)

9. I don't think most people get it. They don't get that I can't eat like they can. Even foods that are healthy (like a lot of fruits and veggies) are not healthy for my body. And most people will never get it and that's fine. It's my issue not theirs. It just gets old. I'm going to have to start bringing things I can eat to parties just so there is something that I can have. I went to a party last week where a meal was supposed to be part of it. There was a huge array of foods and only 2 things were things that I could eat. And one of the 2 isn't that healthy (celery and hotdog-without the bun). Of course, I end up eating stuff that I shouldn't be eating and it's a miracle that I didn't get very sick after. I must have had just the right amount (not much).

10. I can't wait to watch "Losing It with Jillian Michaels" tonight!!!

Weekend Review

Friday we had weigh ins and I was home alone with the girls. Scott was at a Dodger game with his parents. My mom and aunt came over to do some stamping. I made 8 of these cards for a card trading thing we are doing soon. I'm going to be adding a lemon wedge to the cup too.

Saturday was our trip to the L.A. Zoo courtesy of my in-laws. We had a great time. I did great this weekend and ended up losing weight. That was such a great feeling. Especially for such a busy weekend.

The girls both picked the flamingos as their favorite animal today.

The choo-choo train ride is always a must.

My little monkeys

Then Sunday we went to church and had a runners meeting. We went to be a part of the TEAM WACC for the L.A. 1/2 Marathon in January. Scott doesn't think he will do it but I am. So that's 2 1/2 marathons I will be training for. I'm training with Shauna for her Disney 1/2 marathon in September. I'm going to run a half marathon on the same day while she and her hubby run the Disney one in support of them. Then I will start training for the one in January. The one in January is to benefit World Vision. I'm sure I will be posting more about them in the future. They're an awesome organization. We sponsor a child through them. The proceeds to this race will go toward clean water wells being made in Africa. I will have to raise at least $325 for that one to participate. I'll have a few months to do it in.

Speaking of donations...I'm doing the Relay for Life walk this weekend. I still need $90 to hit my goal. Even $5 donations add up. The walk is to benefit the American Cancer Society.






After the running meeting Scott and I were able to get some much needed cleaning done. Yeah for having a space for all of my workout stuff now. I also tried on all of the small clothes again that I have to see if any more fit and a few did! I was able to fit in a pant suit that was a size 14!!! And another nice suit jacket that was a size 12!!!!!!!!!!! That's so amazing to me since I'm in size 16 right now. Yes, I just said my size. ahh It's ok. It will only get better from here. I might as well confess that I started as a 22.

Great weekend!

19 Miles

A pic of Scott and I at the zoo yesterday.

Skyler and I at a party on Thursday. I did my hair after being slightly wet and just letting it look natural. I have a natural wave in mine but haven't ever tried to have it stay that way. I always blow dry it straight. It was fun to be different.

I had a rockin' week for exercise. I managed to do 19 miles!!!!!!!!! I don't think I have ever done that. On top of that I also did a 30 Day Shred Level 3. Yesterday I wore my Nike+ SportBand at the zoo so I would get credit for all of the miles that we walked. We ended up doing 3.3 miles there.

This weekend is going well so far with eating. I managed to lose after yesterday so hopefully I can keep that all off today and make it keep going lower for weigh in on Friday. Obstacle Day 3 is here and we have a bbq happening. Not sure what kind of foods I will be able to have since I have no idea what's on the menu.


Now on to the Summer Slimmin' Challenge update. See above for how the workouts are going. I also am doing great on getting more water and eating my 5 a day. I think I will be losing this week too. So that's the update on that one.

NO regrets

So, weigh in just happened and I didn't lose anything. I didn't gain either. That's a HUGE miracle. Especially considering I was up 3 pounds on Monday. Anyway....I was just reading a friend's blog (Sam from Believe in Yourself) about not having any regrets. That is exactly what I want to do this week. Not have any regrets. No regrets from a bad weekend. I don't want to have to lose what I gain. I want to move on from here and lose weight next week. I know I can do this.

Obstacles:
1. I am going to the L.A. Zoo tomorrow. So food choices will be limited to what is there. I will bring some snacks that I know I can eat. It's going to be hard, but I'm determined to make it a good one.
2. BBQ on Sunday for a running meeting. This is for a group who is going to run a 1/2 marathon in January. I'm going to the meeting to find out about it.
3. Snacks at Sunday School- I either need to just take a tiny piece or nothing at all.
4. Frugos today. No fat frozen yogurt place. I plan on getting some but I will NOT fill up the cup. I shouldn't anyway. It will make me sick. So not worth it.

Fat to Fit Blog Hop

The blog hop is continuing and here is the new "Linky" so you can join along. It's fun reading other people's blogs who are losing weight too. A lot of inspiration in these pages.

10 on Tuesday

1. Healthy You Challenge Check In- I lost 1.4 last week! That was a great feeling. I am now at 62 pounds gone!!! This is my lowest so far.

2. Summer Slimmin' Challenge Check In- Water- I have been doing better on my water intake. I try to carry one with me so that I can be constantly taking sips. 5 a day- I have been better with this too. I try to have a fruit and veggie at each meal and for a snack. Moving- I have been exercising almost every day. That hasn't changed. I've keep that going strong so far.

3. Too many things will be packing in our day tomorrow. It's Skyler's last day at preschool before the summer. It's also the day we bring snacks for school so we have to remember all of that. It's also a wacky water day so we have to remember all of the water stuff. ahh Then after we get Courtney we will have a fun time making cupcakes with friends (for someone--totally not a temptation in the least). I will probably try to squeeze a workout in there somewhere too. :)

4. I keep thinking that I need to write a blog about a few things. I'm going to write it here before I forget them again. One about the song "That's What Faith Can Do". Another about the various foods I can't eat. And I have been wanting to put a little tracker on the side to put what my personal bests for running are so that I can have a place to remember them.

5. If you haven't had a chance to visit, I would encourage you to go to dailymile.com It's a great place to put all of your workouts and keep track of what your activity is like. You can distinct what type of workout and how many miles. You can add notes on each to describe how it went so you can see your progress with getting fitter. It's also an online community. So, you could use the forum (I don't). I do talk to my friends who are on it though to encourage them in their workouts. You can send comments and encouragement or join challenges. It's a lot of fun. I really like that I can put all types of workouts on it instead of only running. My Nike+ site just adds whatever you walk or run when you have the shoes and sport band on. So, it doesn't count anything else. I use that for running, but can also put the running, elliptical, walking, fitness, workout DVDs, anything really on dailymile. Add me as a friend. :)

6. I think I may have figured out part of the problem with my hip. I'm hoping this works. Stretching alone didn't help. I noticed the other night when I started to lay down on our bed that my hip was hitting something hard. It was the bottom of the bed!! We have the type of bed that has water tubes inside a mattress. So, it's firmer than a waterbed, but softer/more giving than a mattress. I'm hoping that one of the tubes just has less water now since my body weight has made my hip hit the bottom of the mattress. I was trying to figure out why it was only one side. If I lay on my left side (side that is NOT hurting) then I usually want my arms to go straight out (away from hubby). So my body is probably on a different tube. When I am on my right side (side that is hurting) I move as far to the edge of the bed so I can give hubby more room and have my arms out more. Thus, I'm on a different tube way over there. We are going to add more water in hopes that this is at least part of the problem. I did elliptical yesterday and walking and elliptical today and my hip only hurt a little bit. Nothing compared to the last time when I ran.

7. Why is there always laundry to do??? It never goes away.

8. I need some new music for my ipod for working out. Any suggestions of upbeat songs that get you moving? I still haven't spent my itunes gift card.

9. I keep thinking I want to re-do our bedroom when we have the money. Lots of home projects in my mind.

10. I'm so thankful to a friend who gave me her yoga mat. She got it from her Wii Fit package but didn't want it. I was just saying that I need to buy one. I need it because when I do stuff on the ground (especially push ups and abs during the 30 Day Shred DVD) I need something to keep me from slipping. My feet would always slip backward because we have hardwood. Even if I had just vacuumed.

Weekend Review

This weekend was again packed full of fun events. Friday I got to go out with "my girls". We had a MOPS Steering Appreciation dinner at El Cholo. This is an amazing Mexican restaurant here. We decided to do an appreciation for Danielle too. We got her a gift card and I made her a "card".

This was the best one of these I have ever done. It's made with paper bags, scrapbook paper, ribbons, pictures, and staples. Each of the little ribbons on the right side pulls out a paper with a picture or writing on it. We all had our own space to write a message and I had a few cute pics too.

This is the inside of one of them. On the right was one of the spaces to write. She loved it. It was a lot of fun to make.

My girls!! The MOPS Steering team (minus Nanette who couldn't come). Amy, April, me, Eva, Sheila, Candice, Danielle, and Christina
The Steering Leadership team are the leaders of the leaders in MOPS. We all are in charge of some aspect of the MOPS group.

This was the first party of Saturday. A pool party for her softball team. Here is my poser.

Even though they already got their trophies at the Closing Ceremonies, the coaches wanted to make it special for each of them. They took turns talking about each girl and giving them the trophy. Coach Gene, Manager Sarah, and Coach John

I didn't take any pictures of the second party. Boo! I forgot. We went to Parnell Park for a farewell party for the Lane's. So sad to see them moving, but great things are in store for them.

Party #3 was Grace's birthday party. This one we did without the kids. We knew it would be a mainly adult party, so the kids would probably have been bored. Instead they got to go to their grandparent's house to have fun. Little did we know they would end up sleeping over. Woho! They begged apparently.

Sunday we went to church as usual. Then we got to see our nieces, nephew, brother, and sister-in-law. They moved back to California from Colorado. We couldn't be more excited to see them move back. We surely missed seeing them all the time. The only way we could be more excited is if Susie, Adam, and Bella moved down too. ;P haha Ya, I can dream. That's my sister-in-law, brother-in-law and niece. (Scott's sister's family)

Ah I just love this one of Courtney.

They both fell asleep in the car on the way home. I guess they were exhausted from playing with their cousins. The next day (today) we got to spend time after school swimming with them too. Ahh it's so nice having them back.

Ok, so now to the not so good part. I ate HORRIBLE this weekend. I snacked on chips galore at the first party, then had cookies on top of that and lunch. Then wasn't going to eat hardly anything at the third party but still ended eating dinner (granted smaller, but still) there and some little candies. Then Sunday we had donuts at church that I just apparently had to have. Then we went out for dinner with my parents. My meal was good (salad), but we had chips and salsa and I ate too much.

I did run last night to try to counter act some of it. ug I hate it when I do so horribly on the weekend. Seriously, why can't I get my act together? I need to either stop going to so many parties, or control myself better at them. ahh I need to get back into the mindset that it's not ok to have everything I want.

I weighed in this morning and was up 3 pounds since Friday morning. Ahh!! That's ridiculous! I have my work cut out for me for Friday's weigh in. I did workout this morning (elliptical for 30 min., stretching, abs, and strength training with legs). So, hopefully that helps. Thankfully my husband is eating what's left of the M&Ms right now. Those have been a challenge for sure. Adding some almonds to those has been a huge weakness. It's like a really awesome trail mix. One that I can not stop eating. I can't eat peanuts, so that was a great alternative. HOWEVER, it's sooooo bad. The almonds alone would be a good snack. Uh, I feel sick just thinking about it. These and other such snacks have to find their way OUT of my house. Because I will eat them.

Dear Traci,
It's not ok to make trail mix (for me).
It's not ok to have so many chips, let alone 3 nights of chips.
It's not ok to eat what makes you sick (especially when you don't know the threshold).
Stop working out just so you can eat more.
Eating 2 bowls of cereal is NOT acceptable.
Drink even more water. Especially with this heat and all of that exercise.
You're not going to lose as much as you could if you keep eating like that on the weekend.
You don't have to win every challenge that presents itself, let alone participate in them all.
Take care of your hip and fix that bed just in case that's the problem.



I got the idea for the letter to myself from Jack Sh*t Gettin' Fit.

100 Miles

I put my Nike+ Sportband in my computer to upload my run and this guy shows up telling me that I have hit 100 miles (since getting my Nike+ system). WOW!! I had no idea it was that high. That feels like such an accomplishment.

I finally was able to calibrate my Sportband/Sensor so that it is more accurate. I did this on the trail by my house. It's already marked with distances. I ran .6 and it told me I was only at .54. That doesn't seem like a lot, but once you add it up to all of the distances I run, it's a lot. 10% my husband pointed out. lol

I also had another person pop up that told me that I had my fastest mile ever too. NOT. It is saying that my fastest mile is 10 min. 33 sec. but it's actually 9 min. 59 sec. Today I wasn't running for the speed of a mile either. The Sportband was just so way off that I wonder what my true fastest is. I'll have to try that again.

Since I went to the track so late, it was getting darker. There was still some sun out but I didn't want to keep running. So, I came home to calibrate and go to the gym to finish my workout. I ended up doing 3.7 miles today. However, my hip started hurting while I was sitting calibrating the thing. I bet it wouldn't have hurt if I had not stopped. Darn.

My hip was doing pretty well during the run at the gym until the last .3 miles. I had to walk. Right before I kept having to stop to walk because it was making me run/limp. That's the weirdest feeling. I had to slow to a walk for the end of it and walking to stretch after I was limping too. Man. I really was hoping this would go away.

Blog Hop

Here is the linky for the Blog Hop if you want to join.

Summer Slimmin' Challenge

I saw this Summer Slimmin' Challenge on 2 of my friend's blogs so I thought I would look into it. It's easy. Just sign up to do it and you too can become healthier over summer. There are several different aspects that you can chose to work on but here are the ones I need to work on.

Really? I don't know who doesn't need to focus on this. You need 5+ servings of fruits and veggies. Ideally you would do 2.5 and 2.5 so you could have equal amounts of soluble and insoluble fiber and not screw up your digestive tract. Not all servings are one cup servings. A lot are 1/2 cup servings. But a 1/2 cup serving is still 1 serving of whatever it is.

Given the fact that I'm only supposed to drink water or tea I should be really good at this, right? lol I do get water, but probably not as much as I should. I NEVER again want kidney stones.

This one won't be as much of a problem because I'm used to working out almost every day. HOWEVER, the summer will be challenging. I like to go when they are both at school so that I don't have to pay for them to go to the gym. So, I will either have to pay for them to go, drop them off with Grandma, or do something at home (or with them if that's an option).

I am so close to one of my huge goals. I want to break past that goal this summer. I only have to lose 12.4 pounds to do it. Or 12.6 to break past it. I can do it!!!!!

National Running Day

Today is National Running Day. So, I ran. I wanted to try to run again after hurting my hip the last time. So I ran. At 1.3 miles I was thinking how awesome it was that my hip hadn't hurt all day. And then it started giving me little twinges. Occasional twinges. This continued throughout the workout until I got to my 3.3 miles today. (That includes warm up and cool down.) I had done a warm up, paused the machine and stretched. Then continued the run. After I stretched really well and even added a couple extra stretches that would specifically target that area. It felt good but still could feel it. Later today I could still feel it when I walked, but not painful. So, I wonder what's going on. The part that worries me is the part that feels like my hip bone. There a a couple other areas right around there that seem like my muscle. That doesn't help. It's also hurting if I'm laying on that side too long at night. I try not to lay too long on that side, but my other side needs a break. My back hurts when I lay on my back. hmm I wish it would go away and I could get on with my running life. :)

10 on Tuesday

1. Why do I do this to myself? I have a great weekend (first in a long time I actually lost over the weekend), then gain yesterday. Then have an awesome salad for lunch and scarf down a bunch of little cookies. ahhhh Why oh why do we even have these little morsels of goodness? Don't we know they call my name from the cupboard. And I shouldn't even be eating them at all. Let alone scarfing them. I think I need to remind myself how bad they are for my body. In more ways than one.

2. Ah my Panera girls. I love hanging out with you. This morning it was Danielle (and Elliott), Dawn, and Nanette (and Matty). We started this tradition of going to Panera before our bible study. Now that bible study is over we decided to keep it going. No, this is not a closed group. lol Feel free to join us at about 8:15 on Tuesdays.

3. We weekly have to fight over the big table with this group of "older gentlemen". Not really a fight, but we try to get there first. We never know how many of us will show up and most of us with kids so we need the room. It's the days like today when Sky and I are waiting or Danielle is waiting that they get all uppity like we are snagging their table. I wonder if they go there every day. We usually end up having the same number of people they do. We just get there faster usually. One week Danielle was standing in front of the chair about to put her stuff down and the little old man came and threw his paper on the table in front of her trying to snag it from her. She was shocked of course since she kinda was already at the table with her stuff. In the vast scheme of life, our little battles with the grumpy old men are nothing. I just think it's a funny story to share.

4. I lost .6 last week. A loss is a loss, right? Man I want this week to be better. I'm hoping to recover from yesterday and today quickly so I can lose more this week. The progress has seemed so slow lately.

5. I got some bad hip pain Sunday night after I ran. I am hoping it was from not stretching after my run 2 days in a row. I am in the habit to stretch after a run at the gym. It's just what I do. But at home, it's so easy to forget. All day Monday it was still hurting every time I stepped. So, I didn't get a workout in yesterday to help my hip heal. Then this morning it felt really good. I eased my way into a workout today. I did the elliptical machine and walked. I stretched a bunch of times on that particular muscle group around my hip. And so far since my workout it's not hurting. Little twinges here and there, but not much. A lot better than yesterday.

6. Yesterday really felt like summer. I got all thrown off when I thought about the fact that Courtney had school today.

7. I would love to spend a weekend going through our garage. I know there is a ton of stuff we could get rid of. Then we could put other things away and have more room in there. We also need more shelving. We definitely need some over the washer/dryer. Our stuff is just sitting on top of the dryer right now. A shelf would be awesome. I wish I had some of those sturdy metal shelves for our garage to put my PartyLite stuff on. I could be all organized like how I want. It would be awesome.

8. I ran in my neighborhood again on Sunday and ran the whole thing. This time was not as easy. I did not feel like I could keep going and going. This run was as the sun was going down and after dinner (an hour). So, I have a feeling that had something to do with it. The run on Saturday was in the morning (8am) after cereal (1 hour before).

9. We have been so blessed to be invited to so many parties. We are at the point that we are going to have to start saying no. Of course we have to if we already RSVPed to another at the same time. It's just hard when the second one you find out about is equally as important to go to as the first. Oh well, people understand, right? I hope so.

10. A couple times last week I got to the gym expecting to have an easier workout and do elliptical. To my surprise, all of those machines were taken, so I went to the treadmill. This is opposite world apparently. Normally every time I want to run the treadmills are all taken. So I ended up having more energy than I thought and getting through running just fine. It just took a little longer to warm up. This just shows that we really have more in us if we really want/have to try. I thought I needed an easier workout and had a hard one. :)

Working Out

I love having a varied workout routine. It keeps me from getting bored. I do get bored pretty easily. I always get asked what my workout routine is like so I thought I would post what I did last week. Now don't think I am this hard core every week.

Monday: 3.4 mile run on the treadmill at the gym, stretching, and 230 reps abs
Tuesday: Biggest Loser DVD Bootcamp workout and Low Intensity Cardio Workout
Wednesday: 3.75 mile run on treadmill at the gym, stretching, and 230 reps abs
Thursday: Nothing
Friday: 30 Day Shred Level 1 and 2
Saturday: 3.1 mile run around my neighborhood.
Sunday: 3.37 mile run around my neighborhood.

Some workouts I like doing:

30 Day Shred DVD (Jillian Michaels): Any level. If I feel like a good workout I do Level 1 and 2 together
Biggest Loser DVD: Any workout on here. My favs are the Low Intensity Cardio and the Bootcamp
Running: Treadmill or outside...pros and cons to both.
Step Aerobics: I like the step class at our gym, but I have a hard time getting there. It's during Biggest Loser and I don't have a DVR. lol But now I can go since the season is over. Sometimes I would go anyway and catch the rest online.
Pilates: I love pilates but hardly ever get to do it.
Zumba: Zumba is fun but not really in my opinion a great workout. Or maybe it's just the one at our gym. I usually feel like I still need to workout more after.
Stair Master: That big huge one that looks like you are actually climbing steps. That one will kick your butt.
Elliptical Machines: With arms is my favorite. It makes you burn more calories and is harder. However I like the one with no arms because I do not hold on to the machine. I can go super fast on that one and do sprints easier on it.
Rowing Machine: Ah, it's ok, but doesn't feel like I'm working out very hard. Even on the highest resistance setting. It hurts my back too.
Wii Games: There are several Wii games that I like that are good workouts. However, our Wii isn't working right now so those are not helping me at the moment. Wii Fit, Biggest Loser for Wii, etc.

There are more, but they elude my mind at the moment.

Beutiful Blogger Award

Joy From Nuggets of Truth - My Weight Loss Journey just gave me the Beautiful Blogger award!! I can't believe I got another blogger award (my third), and this one twice. WOW! I really am so humbly grateful. Joy had some really sweet things to say about me too. What a sweet heart Joy has.

So the rules of this one are to say 7 things that others might not know about you (this will be hard since I did this already and had a hard time coming up with anything the first time). The other rule is to pass it out to 7 other bloggers.

About me:
#1 I'm allergic to the sun. I think this is so strange and other people usually think it is too. But a doctor told me that I'm allergic to the sun. Also, lately I have been hearing from more and more people who also are. It's strange. I need to stay in the shade if possible. Not too much exertion/exercise when it's sunny out. And I get heat exhaustion really easily from it as a result.

#2 I tried out twice to be a dancer in two different Disneyland parades. All of those skinny &*#% took the spots. At the time I wasn't really heavy, but I wasn't really skinny either. I knew I danced it well though. Oh well...that would have taken life in another direction.

#3 I make all of my own cards. Hallmark will not be making a dime from me for cards.

#4 I think only my husband knows this. And I'm not even entirely sure I want to put it here. I have 2 ideas for books I want to write. I just hate it when people see that you want to do something and then pretend to have always wanted to do the same thing and kind of steal your joy. Don't be a joy stealer. lol

#5 I have a fear of swimming in the ocean. I will go in (a clean beach) up to my waist now. But I didn't even want to do that for a while. I got pulled under when I was younger and it really terrified me.

#6 I have a patriotic themed front room and kitchen area. Our bathroom is under the sea. Skyler's room is Winnie the Pooh. Courtney's room is Suzy's Zoo (which I'm assuming we will have to change soon). Our room is like a sage green and lavendar (no theme).

#7 I painted a mural on several walls in Courtney's room. While I was on "low pelvic movement rest" while pregnant with her. I had to do it in little spurts of energy. Lots of fans and open windows too.

Ok, now the hard part. 7 bloggers to give it to.

Endurance Isn't Only Physical She is so inspirational. She's an amazing runner and mom.

Stephanie from Unstable and Bitchy Gotta love my Staph. She's always making me laugh.

Lisa from Teaching with Soul Lisa's blog is an excellent source for teachers or anyone with children. She has a desire to educate through her blog. Love it.

Crystal from Fitness Journal An inspirational blogger on a weight loss journey. Love her creative ideas.

Alex from Adventures of a DONE Girl Named Alex First of all love the concept of being "done" with being a fat girl. I like to catch up on the latest on her blog.

Lesia from "Here we go...hold on tight!" A fun loving new blogger/facebook friend. Her determination to lose weight even with a broken bone is amazing.

Stephanie from OurLongLives A fun loving mom and friend from way back when. I love to see updates of what her family has been up to.

5K Around My House

I went for a run this morning with Shauna. We set out to do a 5K around my house for the first time together. I have done it one time before by myself and had to stop a bunch of times to walk. I am so happy to report that I RAN THE WHOLE THING!!!!!!!!!!!! 36 minutes 17 seconds (according to my Nike+ Sportband). We both were wearing one and they were so different. So, we realized we both need to calibrate them. :) I don't know why I haven't done it yet. Hers said we did 3.33 miles and I had to keep running to get my 3.1 in. I ended up doing 3.11 miles.

Two great things about this run. First of all it was a slower pace and I was loving that speed. I felt like I could keep going when we were done. I felt strong and capable of going much further today. And it was so nice to run outside and with a friend. It's nice to have company. Even if I slow her down. ;) I have been doing so much of my running in the gym that it was so great to just run outside with the wind blowing on our faces. It did end up getting a little sunny by the second lap, but still nice. We went early in the morning so it would be cooler and because she had to get back home.

This has been a great start to a new week of weight loss. I feel like I am doing so much better eating during the weekend. And I am exercising every day too so I should be losing this weekend instead of gaining. That would be an awesome change.

I tried on a shirt from my closet that I had yet to wear and it was feeling looser then when I tried it on. I was really enjoying that feeling until I dropped a strawberry on it. Oops! That is some hard stuff to get out. Even when I went straight to get it off.

We had our last day of MOPS on Thursday and my friend, Amy won both hair cutting packages. She generously gave one to me. I am so excited. I need to call to schedule my free haircut! I'm going to chop it off!!

Giveaway

One of the blogs I follow is doing a big giveaway. So, I wanted to post about it here just in case any of you would like to participate.
Fight Fat Phobia is the blog to go to.

Blog Tour

This is the Blog Tour which was started by Sam at Believe In Yourself. Read the blog and follow the link at the bottom to the next blog...and the next and next.

1. Post a before picture. (see below)

2. Post your most current after picture.(see below)

3. State the amount of weight you’ve lost. 60 pounds

4. If you are on a specific eating/exercise plan, what is it? I eat smaller portions, a lot less packaged foods, eat a lot more fruits and veggies, drink lots of water, and exercise almost every day.

5. What is your favorite healthy snack? (share a pic if you have one) Fruit... I really love having a nice fruit salad (a bunch of fruits cut up together).

6. What is the biggest life lesson you’ve learned on your journey? That I can do this and I shouldn't compare myself to others. I will lose at my own pace and that is good enough.

7. What is the biggest strength you’ve discovered about yourself? I have a strong determination to get this goal accomplished once and for all. I have a one track mind. I'm surprised how much stronger I have become and how much endurance I have gained.

8. What has been your toughest struggle? Dealing with the Fructose Malabsorption and the dietary changes associated with that.

9. Who has been your biggest supporter and why? My husband. He is the one who is here for me every day. Saying encouraging things to me along the way. He is very supportive when I need to go to the gym or run yet again.

10. When you get to goal, what will you do next? Focus on maintaining my weight and enjoy a variety of workouts. Try to inspire others to do the same.

11. What do you wish someone had told you when you first began? That everyone has excuses for why they can't do something. But that's just another reason why not to try. Make room for workouts in your day no matter when you have to do it. Make yourself a priority. You deserve to be the focus for once and can make this change.

12. Share any other words of wisdom you want to share. It's amazing the things that I hear people say to me when they are talking about their own weight loss progress. Usually it's a list of excuses about why they can't lose weight or why they haven't had success. I say, get rid of the excuses. Start thinking of reasons why you can make this happen in your life. Start by listing things that you want to accomplish along the way. Little things that will make life easier. (Like not needing the extra seat in a plane. Or not feeling like you are suffocating if you lay on your back.) If you keep your "whys" in mind, it will make your focus seem easier to keep at the forefront of your mind.

13. SO NOW...please go to see Lily from lilyfluffbottom .

10 on Tuesday

#1 This is my new favorite picture of me. :) Sometimes I get so excited to see my face in the mirror. It's amazing how much my neck and jaw line has changed. And I really don't mind a pic of my face anymore.

#2 Wow, was Biggest Loser amazing tonight. I am so inspired by that show. They had some awesome transformations. Scott and I were sitting there guessing about how much they weighed. We did pretty good. We were within about 10 pounds each time. lol

#3 Watching the Biggest Loser was the first time I actually got to sit and watch something on OUR NEW COUCH!!! We have had this blue sectional since we bought our house (9 years ago). We didn't want to get a new one until our kids were older because of the constant messes they make on it. We couldn't pass up this offer. It was FREE!!!!!! My in law's neighbor had them on his lawn to give away to whomever when I came over. I got Scott over there right away to see it. It's amazing how much it changes the look of the room.

#4 We were hoping someone would take our old sectional. We put it in our front yard with a free sign on it. lol No takers yet. We are calling to have it picked up.

#5 This is the week of Open Houses. Courtney's was tonight and Skyler's is on Thursday.

#6 We have MOPS Tea and Testimony on Thursday. This is the last meeting of MOPS and is pretty special. I'm in charge of the raffle as usual so I have to get ready for that. Also, this is the last time I will be in charge of it. It's a little bitter sweet. I've been doing it for so many years. But since I will be Co-Coordinating next year, I won't be doing the Fundraising position anymore.

#7 I made a fruit salad today on a whim. We had so many different fruits that I just decided to make one. It was sooooooo good. And Courtney even told me that this was a great lunch today. That made me smile.

#8 Oohhh I can't stop thinking about the Biggest Loser finale. All I can say is that when I get to my goal weight I am planning to have some kind of party. We're all worth celebrating, right?!

#9 I am so excited that my sister-in-law and niece are in town this week. It has been so fun playing with Bella. She's so adorable.

#10 I am a Frugos lover!! Frugos is an awesome self-serve frozen yogurt place near us. It feels so bad. It is so bad. I know the yogurt is better for you. But come on. It's still BAD for you. Just the toppings alone. Ok, so I could be good and get fruit on it. But who wants to do that? Not me. lol Sorry if I just made you crave frozen yogurt. The point was to say that it's still not a healthy food. Especially for me. I'm seriously surprised that I didn't get sick the last time I had it.

Sunshine Blog Award!!!!!!!

WOW!!! HOLY COW BATMAN!! I just received another blog award. I am so shocked and in total humble awe. Thank you so much to Lesia of Here We Go Hold On Tight for giving me this blog award. I never thought I would get one award (ever), let alone 2 within 2 days. And I love how bright and sunny this one is.

The rules are to pass it on to 12 of your friends. Wow, that's a lot. But still it will be hard to narrow it down. I will be giving it to 12 people who didn't get the other award that I just passed out.

#1 Heidi from The Life of a Mom - I love the way she writes all of the details down of her children so that she can keep them saved forever and put into her scrapbook. Her kids will appreciate all of that detail later. :)

#2 Kelly from The Life of Miley and Irelyn - Kelly and I go back to college in our sorority days. I love to see new posts from Kelly about her wonderful girls. She definitely brings sunshine to to the blog world.

#3 Marla from Life with my boys - Marla's my girl for sure! She's an awesome mom, wife, and friend!! I love seeing updated pictures and the latest happenings with her family. Her dedication and love really show through in her blog.

#4 Marie from Play Hard Play Clean - Marie is so creative. I love her little lists, pictures, confessions, etc. Lots of fun to read.

#5 Amy from My Jorgensen Family - I love photos by Amy. She's a great photographer. Her family blog shows off her talent. I love that she posts the millions of play dates they go to. :) She's a great friend who really loves her family.

#6 Scale Junkie - This is the blogger who started the Healthy You Challenge. If you haven't checked out, you should. It's an excellent source for support on your weight loss journey.

#7 Tracy from The Moore Family Adventure - Tracy is one of my little sisters from sorority days. She has a wonderful family blog. I love seeing updates on her children and seeing all of the latest pictures.

#8 Scott from Scott's Shots - Yes, it's my hubby. It feels so wrong not giving him one. He always makes me laugh. It's so fun to hear things from his perspective and I always appreciate his sweet words.

#9 FITCETERA - I love her beautiful food entries. They make me want to try new things. I also love her obsession with captcha codes. haha

#10 Sylvia from Big Steps 2 Take - I love her themed days. How fun! She is a new friend from the Healthy You Challenge. Like she needs another award. hahaha But she deserves another one. :) She is such a fun writer.

#11 June from The Path to Health - June is so encouraging. I like the way she finds helpful weight loss info from places and shares them with us. She always has good things to share to help encourage us all.

#12 Sam from Believe In Yourself - Sam is the one who gave me the first award. :) So now I can finally give one to her. Sam is very encouraging and supportive. I love how she uses pictures to help along with her stories. She is an inspiration.

Ok, that was HARD. There are so many good blogs out there.

My First Blog Award!!!!

I just received my first blog award!!! It's called the Beautiful Blogger Award and was given to me by a friend named Sam from Believe In Yourself. How exciting!!!! Sam is a new friend from the Healthy You Challenge that I am a part of. She is an awesome blogger and deserves to keep getting this award back. So, the rules are to pick 7 bloggers to give it to and to write 7 things that most people wouldn't know about me.

People that I would love to bestow this award to. (Please don't feel bad if I didn't give it to you. I'm sure you were in the running. It was really hard to narrow it down.) These aren't in any particular order.

#1 C. Beth Blog - Beth is one of my favs for sure. She is always making me laugh and challenging me to run a little more, write a bit, and blog more often. She is very talented.

#2 Karen from Muffin Fixation - We go way back. :) She's so amazing. She is constantly thinking of the next thing to do and how she can challenge herself the next time. Very inspirational.

#3 Keelie from REAL FAT - Keelie is one of my favorite new blogger friends. I love reading the latest on her blog. She is VERY inspirational and encouraging.

#4 Chibi Jeebs & The Neurotic Struggle - She is always so sweet to me and definitely should get an award just for her sheer support and encouragement to me and other friends. I love reading her blog.

#5 Lindsay from Healthy Stride - A very supportive encouraging new friend. She is a huge inspiration. I love her spunky side and love reading her blog.

#6 Amy from Inner Fat Girl - I wasn't sure you would want everyone going to your blog or not, but I couldn't not give it to you. You are amazing and are always inspiring me to do more than I ever think I can do. You are one of the biggest inspirations for me. In weight loss and in running. You challenged me to do a 1/2 marathon with you when I was only running about 2 minutes at a time. You started a fire in me and I can't thank you enough for that. And for all of your love and support.

#7 Mary from Yafusso Posse - My original blog inspiration. Mary is an awesome friend. We have known each other a long while now. I always look forward to Mary's next blog. She's so creative and imaginative. Several of my themes for different days were stolen from her. :) Mary is one awesome mom, wife, and friend. Love you Mary!

Now to my 7 things:
#1 I have a Bachelor's degree in Psychology (and a minor in Health Promotion)
#2 I have always wanted to have my own photography business.
#3 I have never broken a bone,
#4 I am a PartyLite consultant who needs to have my own party to kinda start back up again.
#5 My first trip was to Alaska when I was 5 or 6 months old.
#6 I have a desire to do a mission trip to Africa.
#7 My #1 allergy is dust mites.

It ended up being kind of random. But there you go.