Christmas

Here we have the Christmas Eve excitement.























For some reason I didn't pick up the camera again until last night. Lucas had a Go Diego Go themed Christmas, while Max had a Nintendo Christmas. This year was a little different for Max. Besides one Star Wars Transformer, the only toys he received were joint gifts for him and his brother. Everything was electronics. He noticed it too. But I reminded him that he really didn't ask for many toys, and that it would have taken me 6 years to get all the different stuff he got. He seemed fine. I took him to Target yesterday to spend his gift cards....did he buy toys? Nope, 2 more video games and a CD! I think we are moving on to a new era. That's cool with me though. I like it. I was pretty excited to see that he picked out and purchased a CD. Now his CD collection has a whopping 2 CD's in it!

10 more sleeps until Christmas!

Since the days are flying by and I don't know if I'll have a chance to talk many folks....I want to wish everyone Happy Holidays.
On the off chance that Coop ever reads this...I'll have to wait until after Christmas to share all reasons that I'm excited this year. I can't wait because he is going to be one happy boy!
: )

Quote of the Day

" My teeth are like a pickle"
~ Lucas P. Andrews

Hacked

So I'd been thinking of moving off of MySpace for awhile now. I have these 3 pages of "friends" that I actually know but I don't talk to...even with the ease of MySpace.
Then S&E started Bugs in a Rug, which looked great and did everything I needed. Picture posting and blogging.
This morning while sipping my coffee and checking MySpace (for nothing in particular) I noticed that my account had been "hacked" and someone had posted a bulletin with my account.
So that settled it. Changed the password, set the profile to private and I'll be slowly moving over my favorite blogs. There really isn't much since I let my page get away from the family updates that I had originally hoped it would be....Stay Tuned!

Quote of the Day

"I not poo poo in my Pull-Up....But these are my nipples."

~Lucas P. Andrews

Preoccupied & Proud

Some of you might find the following very boring…This is more for my benefit than anyone else's. I want to keep track of my progress. Of course Atta Girls' & encouraging words are always welcome.

I went to the doctor on Aug 28th for a "meet n'greet" and to get some refills on my migraine medication. Stepped on the scale, I had never weighed this much with out being pregnant. In turn I've never felt so crappy and run down without being pregnant. After the initial shock and horror, I quickly embraced what I had been trying to tell myself for months, "If I loose this weight I'm sure I'll start feeling better all around" Because while I'm not as big as some, I'm definitely too big for me.

Besides, I've done it before and I've looked and felt great. I know it's possible I just have to make it a priority. To do any kind of a diet that I really wanted, I'd have to wait until we had the funds to do the major shopping. That wasn't the case at that point.

So knowing that it is all about eating right and exercise I started to take baby steps. I had been walking on my breaks…which were an effort, and it took me a long time to recover afterwards, I was dizzy for at least an hour after each walk. Not fun.
I started watching what I was eating, cutting certain things out and making better choices. But things were still really difficult for a week or so, like I was dragging myself thru a sea of quick sand.

Then I was doing some research and stumbled across some message boards where people have reported the side effects of the same preventative migraine medicine that I take. Oh Snap! Weight gain, irritability, lack of sleep….and so on. That answered alot! I started thinking about how sporadically I have migraines and the fact that I still have to keep pain killers and sedatives close by, because I still get them even while taking this pill 4 times a day, but just not quite as much pain. So I stopped taking that immediately. The benefits did not out way the side effects at all.
That same day I found a bunch of testimonials about the effects of B-50 complex. It sounded like a wonder vitamin! I stopped the Migraine medicine on Thursday afternoon and started the B-50 Saturday (9/23) morning. I felt like a new woman. I had so much energy. It was amazing. Then of course by mid week I was sick. (because I always seem to get sick when I'm getting on the right track) 2 weeks of "bronchitis". That's what the doctor called it. I don't necessarily think that's what it was. In fact I felt worse once she put me on antibiotics. But due to this B-50 I was able to keep working the whole time…only taking one day off. Maybe that was a bad thing. If I wouldn't have had the extra energy I might have just laid low and gotten over it faster.
When I had recovered and was up and going again… I was feeling good, walking daily, cleaning like a mad woman, and attempting to eat right.
I started thinking about my own (and other peoples) experiences with diet & weight loss….and all the crazy fad diets out there. I really didn't want to "diet". I've done so well in the past with just the mind state of "making good choices". I finally realized that I needed a kick start and a real plan to loose the extra baggage.

So I decided on The South Beach Diet. It guarantees initial quick results and it teaches (or in my case reminds and reinforces) a healthy way to eat for life….the way I used to eat. Phase 1 is 2 weeks. You are supposed to loose 8-13lbs during that time. After you move on to Phase 2 where you stay until you reach your goal….loosing 1-2lbs per week. Then Phase 3 is the long term. I'm on day 7 of Phase 1. It is the easiest diet I've ever followed. I'm not starved. I do not feel deprived. The best part is that I can eat most of the foods that I love.

My results so far? Well, I didn't weigh myself before I started so I don't have a solid starting point. After that first disgusting weigh in on 8/28 I didn't get back on the scale until day 3 of the diet….I had lost 10 lbs in 7 weeks! And that was just "prep work", I was so happy and motivated. This morning I weighed myself again…I've lost 6 pounds in 4 days. AMAZING! I couldn't be happier.I want to get back to where I was before I got pregnant with Luc.
If I loose an additional 5-10lbs that would just be icing on the cake….not that I'd eat it though.

It's that time again

So my sister calls on July 20th to remind that it was only 10 more days until my birthday. This was welcomed since I've been calling her almost daily, since her birthday passed in June, to keep her updated on the countdown. "It's almost my birthday month!" But what made this call really special was that she needed to call me from the waiting room of her pediatricians office to let me know, with all of the sisterly kindness she could muster, that it was also 374 days until I turn 30. Isn't she just the cutest thing ever?!
I don't usually call either of my sisters names. They seem to handle the name calling quite well without my help. This time I couldn't help it. I really don't know why though. I was more bummed about 30 last year and the year before than this year.
Nik & Aidan are coming to visit this weekend. I can't think of a better present. Saturday Max and I are going to Marine World with Allison and Santi. Max is into and tall enough for the coasters. Plus we are leaving the younger brothers at home! WooHoo! Sunday night I think my Dad is taking us out for Greek food.
The mystery is my dear sweet husband; he never fails to amaze me. No matter how big or small the gift is the gesture is always perfect.
I'm looking forward to my weekend and to August, which is always so busy for us. There are lots of things going on next month but the most fun are Max's Birthday on the 17th and our Anniversary on the 14th.
This is the first August in many years that I'm not dreading. It's really no different than any other year. I guess something has changed my outlook. Whatever or however....I am thankful.