5 Things...And It's Friday!

Linking up with Karli and Amy.

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So today I have 5 things to share, some exciting!

1.  Jaclyn Hill
Can we just talk about how much I am loving her channel???  I just recently discovered it and to say I have become obsessed might be an understatement.  There was a time in my life, not so many moons ago, that you wouldn't catch me without makeup.  Slowly that went away and now we are all lucky if I wear mascara once a week.  I want to get back into it, not too fast, but definitely start stepping up my makeup game again.  I think Jaclyn is hilarious and really beautiful.  Her makeup tutorials are easy to follow along with and the "extras" at the end are hilarious!  If you haven't seen her yet, check it out, NOW!

2.  Baby Weight
So you might remember, a couple months 6 months back, AHHH, I was quite large and in charge with my baby belly.  Since Snuggle Muffin has joined our family I have talked about wanting to lose all of my baby weight, plus some, before we expand our family once again.  We don't want our kids too far apart, so the challenge has been on.  I wrote about it here and when I came back to work, 3 months ago, I still had 5 pounds to lose.  I couldn't lose those pesky little 5 pounds to save my life.  BUT as of this week, I not only lost those 5 pounds, but an additional ONE!  That's right, I now, officially, weigh less than I did when I got pregnant 1.5 years ago!  YAHOOOOOOOO!

3.  Boycotting
Caleb has been on a food boycotting session for the past 3 days and it is getting to me.  He is hungry and crabby but doesn't want the food I'm giving him.  They aren't new foods, nor are they foods that he doesn't normally love.  Babies are confusing, still, after 6 months, and just when I think I'm starting to figure it all out - well as much as I can.  Caleb, please start eating everything again!

4.  Gift Cards
I am a hoarder, we all know this.  Well yesterday I was going through my purse, randomly, and found a ton of gift cards that I still have.  When I was on maternity leave I tried to use all of my gift cards as much as possible, but somehow I didn't.  So yesterday I found some really good ones and I got a couple new pairs of shoes and we went out to dinner!  Both with gift cards and spending very little of our own money!  Yes please! :)

5.  #HughesMove2014
I haven't done a house update in a long time and that is mostly because we haven't been doing anything really major around the house, but this last weekend we started ripping out more shrubbery that we dislike and we are going to start working on the house more again.  The weather is getting absolutely gorgeous (83 degrees yesterday) and we are loving it!  We love our home and can't wait to continue to make it more our style.

Serious Healthy Time

We all say it, right?  That next week we will start a "healthy lifestyle".  That next week we will join the latest lose-weight-quick trend.  That next week you will give up all this stuff that you like in exchange for things you don't like so that you can get "skinny".

Well as often as we all say it, especially in January due to New Year's resolutions, how many of us actually go through with it?

I can tell you that for me, personally, time and time again I have tried to do things to get "skinny".  Ever since I was a teenager I never thought that I was thin enough or pretty enough to be friends with the other girls.  I don't know how, but I managed to score a pretty hot husband who loves me unconditionally and for that, I am forever grateful.

When we met I was probably the thinnest I have been - ever!  I was going to school full-time, working the server lifestyle and not having a good eat-sleep-repeat schedule going on.  But hey, isn't funny how being unhealthy makes you see the results you want?  Yet when you diet and exercise it takes longer to get those results?

I digress.

After graduating from college I got a desk job big-kid job and quit the nightlife lifestyle and the skinny-ness that went along with it.  I gained around 10 pounds probably after the first year working at my job and moving out with the hubs - i.e. pizza, take-out and really bad food that is really cheap.  Blah Blah Blah, time went on and I would "work out" every now and then.

Ryan went on deployment and things got serious in my brain with wanting to lose weight.  Me and a bestie joined a gym and we actually did it.  For 4 months straight we went to the gym 4 days a week and worked out for an hour.  I was so proud of myself, and her!  I ended up losing 13 pounds!

Then the hubs came home.  And as hard as we tried, sedentary snuggling took over and I gained some back.  We had the wedding and the honeymoon and starting trying for a little.  We were successful and keeping weight off just wasn't an option.

10 months later we popped - well not really, read his birth story here, here and here - out a little and now I was left with 33 pounds weight gained and 41 pounds away from my goal weight.

I went walking with the babes as often as possible after having him.  We would pack up the stroller and strap on our tennis shoes and off we went.  We did that everyday until he was 12 week old - when I went back to work.

When I came back to work I was 5 pounds away from not having any "baby weight" left and only 15 pounds away from my ultimate goal.  Work is crazy and hectic and after being away from my baby all day I didn't want to spend another 30-45 minutes without him while I worked out.  So I just didn't.

Well after this super long story up above, here is the short of it.  This is a new week and a new year.  I am now 12 pounds away from my ultimate goal and it will happen.  I want to lose the rest of this "baby weight" and a little extra in the next 4-5 months.  Seems extreme?  Well if you want something bad enough it is bound to happen, right?

I am now dedicating myself to healthier choices and changes in my life.  I started by walking again with my baby and making homemade granola.  I am going to work on packing healthy snacks to take with me at work and focus on portion control - because this girl can eat and likes to.

Wish me luck and if you want to, yell at me daily to make sure I do something!  I am a person who needs motivation in the form of someone else yelling at me to do it.  LOL.

Oh Hey Friday!

Linking up with September Farm and The Farmer's Wife today for Oh Hey Friday!

1.  Happy Halloween!
It is our first Halloween as parents and we are so excited!  As much as I would love to say that we are doing a family dress-up this year, we aren't :(  It is scheduled to rain tonight and my hubby isn't really into dressing up as it is.  But just wait until next year!  I am thinking that we will all be a character from Thor!  LOL  But until then, enjoy the cuteness that is my little boy in his 3 Halloween outfits and stayed tuned with IG to see what he goes out as tonight.

2.  FitBit Flex
That's right!  This mama got a FitBit Flex!  We were at Verizon on Sunday and the hubs put it on the counter and before I could tell him reasons why we shouldn't purchase it right now we got it.  I am so excited!  I have been wearing it non-stop and I am loving seeing my activity throughout the days increase.  It is so nice and will hopefully continue to help me in my Operation Pre Baby Body.

3.  iPhone 6
So this is why we went to Verizon on Sunday.  While we were in Colorado in September we went to Verizon to get Ryan's phone looked at.  We both have had our iPhone 4 since October 2011 so we knew they were on their last leg.  While we were there they were having a deal for the iPhone 6.  Let's just say it was amazing and we bit the bullet.  We got them shipped to us and they arrived last week.  On Sunday we took them in to our local store and got them activated and all pretty.  I am so in love with it and so excited!  I have never had a "brand new" phone!

4.  I have an 8-week-old
I really can't believe it!  My little 7 pound, 14 ounce baby is now 8 weeks old!  It is hard to believe that it was that long ago that I was pushing him out and falling deeper in love with someone than I ever believed possible.

5.  I have a 1 year old
Confused?  Well don't be.  Hank Hughes turned 1 year old on Wednesday!  I can't believe how fast it went.  Granted we didn't have him for the first 8 weeks of his life but we love him just the same :)  I can't believe that he went from being our little 15 pound puppy to a 90+ pound love bug!  Happiest Birthday Hanky Poo!

 

Operation Pre Baby Body

Hi there!

So we are officially 4 weeks post partum and feeling great!

I have decided that it is time to get my butt in gear ::slowly of course:: and start getting back into shape.

Now when I say "getting back into shape" I guess I should really just be saying get into shape. I wasn't in the best shape pre-baby but I wasn't the worst either. I had some extra fluff here and there but overall I was fine. I'm not a twig but not a rollie police either.

During pregnancy I was really concerned with gaining weight. I have never been super impressed with my body and the idea of gaining weight had a little effect on me mentally. I stressed about weight gain at each doctor's visit and that they would tell me I had gained too much weight.  In the last month of pregnancy I decided that my baby and I were both healthy and that was all that mattered. I stopped worrying about weight gain and in the end gained a total of 33 pounds.  This is only 3 over what my doctor wanted so overall I was thrilled.

Now that our precious little boy is here and Mama is healing well I have decided to start getting in motion.  Me and the babes will be walking everyday that the weather permits us. I also will be using my Jillian Michaels DVDs and let her yell at me and I will yell back - well only loud enough to not wake the sleeping prince of course. I also have a Danskin Pilates box set that I bought on Groupon a couple of years ago and have never used. I can't wait to start using these helpful tools.

I also will be tracking my walks with MapMyRun. I love this app.  I used it everyday during my maternity leave before baby came and loved seeing how it tracks your workouts. It tells you distance, speed, average, mapping and how many calories you burned. I also love it because you can link it to you MyFitnessPal app. This is a wonderful app that tracks your calorie intake per day as well as your water intake and workouts. I am a person who needs structure and reinforcement. These apps keep me focused and disciplined. Although they are just apps, they will let me know when I am doing a good job and a poor job.

I can't wait to start meal planning for us again. Meal planning is good for us on multiple levels. It keeps our bank account happy by us not eating out as much and it is healthier. We can control the sodium and fat levels in every meal if we stay home and make them ourselves. I need to look up some tasty recipes and get some variety going for the hubs. If you have any good ones, please send them our way :)

I want to lose all of my baby weight and possibly an additional 10 pounds over the next couple of months. Ideally I would like to be 10 pounds lighter than when I got pregnant by the first of the year, my birthday :) I know that it will take a lot of hard work and discipline but I am motivated. I don't want my husband to forget who he married ;)

Wish me luck!!