I-Spy Swap

I know I haven't posted much about my sewing lately. I have done a little and haven't taken pictures....I know bad me.

I did join an I-Spy Fabric Swap over at The Project Corner. I had to chose 10 different fabrics and cut 20 4" squares from each one. That makes 200 4" squares and then I ship them off to her and get back 190 different squares including 1 each of the ones I sent her. I am shipping mine out today and will get a package back by Feb 15th. I think this will make a quilt for my Niece. Maybe as a gift for her first birthday in April. Of course I have never made a quilt yet but I know I can do it.

Fabric Giveaway and info

I stumbled across Suzanne’s Great Big Giveaway (and sale)
Suzanne is closing up her actual store but keeping her online store open and she is having a some clearance sales at her online store Knots & Bolts .

The giveaway is amazing! Go check it out and don't forget to check out her store too. I know I am a sucker for fabric. :o) And she has some good deals!

Woohooo

Ok so today is day 3 of my low cal portion of the HCG diet.

I woke up to a loss of 2.4lbs after 2 days on the low cal portion.

So my total is now 5.4lbs lost in 2 days! AWESOME!

Starting weight: 145.6
after Load weight: 147.6
Current weight: 142.2

I will post some before pictures and pictures as I go through the process. I am not sure weekly pictures will be best or maybe every 2wks.

Tuesday Happenings

Okay so I have kind of fallen off the posting train.
In the past week I have started the HCG diet, more on that in a minute. I have made a little makeup bag for my friends birthday and have given it to her without taking pictures....Bad me I know. It was so cute too.
She loved it!
My daughter has gotten her drivers license and I freak out everytime she drives away!
I think there is a virus on our main computer at home. Hubby was on it and said it started doing all kinds of pop ups and such and I am thinking he clicked on one and it downloaded a virus. Of course he says he clicked on nothing. No clue. Thankfully we only spent $40 on the tower from my work and my son doesn't use his very often so we are going to swap them around. Well either get the one fixed or just get rid of it. No we didn't have updated virus protection on our computer but I didn't mind with a $40 computer.

Anyway...On to my new diet.

I started on Sat the 23rd and had to load up on foods the first 2 days and start the drops those days too. It was HARD! I am not used to eating so much. By Sat night I didn't want to look at food with out fear of vomitting. Then on Sunday I was not hungry but forced it anyway. I gained 2lbs during my load days which is fine.
Then on Monday I started my low calorie portion along with my HCG drops. It wasn't bad. I was a tad hungry/snacky but I stuck to my strict diet and it was good. So I stepped on the scale this morning to do my morning weigh in and I am down 3lbs! So I have lost the 2lbs from loading and another pound.

So here is where I started:
145.6 on Sat morning Day 1
147.6 on Mon morning Day 3
144.6 pm Tues morning Day 4

I feel good and excited about this.

Bad excercise week....

This week has not been my week for exercising at all. I have been so busy with other things that the gym has skipped my brain.

Lets see...Monday I can't remember what I did...oh wait I painted the trim in the bathroom, then I did massive amounts of laundry. Can't forget about running kids around too.

Tuesday I watched a demo for the Rainbow cleaner (for a friend's cousin) and that was after cleaning the house. Then I napped for a bit as I had a long night. I took my middle daughter and her friend to go see Nick Jonas and the Administration at the Pageant in St. Louis. They had a blast and it was a good show. We got home about 11pm and I was in bed about 12. I didn't sleep well at all.

Wednesday was my recoup from the concert day. So I lounged and slept off and on until 11:30am!!! Yikes, but I needed it. Then I did a whole lot of nothing until about 1:30ish. I picked my oldest up from school to take her for her driving test. I was a nervous wreck while she was testing. She passed though! She was excited. I am a nervous mess still... So we spent the afternoon getting her license and such. I didn't let her do any solo trips because it was so foggy out and I didn't want her driving in the dark with the fog. I hate it and I would not have rested easy at all with her on the roads solo.

Today so far has been an awful day. I had to take my oldest to school at 6:30 this morning. I could have let her drive but she had to get a parking permit still. Thankfully I didn't let her drive. I went to start my car and it wouldn't start. I tried a couple times and gave up. So I started her car and I am using that for the day. Well we managed to miss the bus for the younger two and the neighbor girl. So everyone rode with me to drop the oldest off then back home we went for a bit. I gathered my lunch and ate my breakfast and we were off again. It is about 12:40 and I feel like I am about to crash! I need a nap. I think I am stressed out. I hope there is nothing major with my car as we just don't have a lot of funds to fix it. I mean it is a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica, it isn't old by any means. It started fine yesterday. Maybe it was operator error this morning. :o)

Tonight I am meeting up with a friend to go over the HCG diet and make sure I know what I am doing as I plan on starting that on Sat! I am excited.

I did weigh myself this morning just to see where I am since I haven't worked out. 142.8. So I have still managed to lose about 0.8lbs since Monday. I am thrilled and I can tell my pants seem to not be as tight in my thighs. So that puts me at an unofficial 3lbs in 2.5wks. Not bad!

Monday Weigh in Week 2

Mondays Weigh in 01/18/2010: 143.6 (0)
Measurements:
Neck: 13" same
Upper Arms: Both 11" same
Bust: 34.5" (-0.5")
Waist at belly button: 30.0"
Hips: 42.5" (-0.5")

Results: Weight stayed the same so still down 2.2lbs
Lost 1 more inch for a total of 2inches!

Starting either the end of this week or beginning of next week I will be doing the HCG diet. You can find more info at diyhcg.com. My friend has done this with amazing results! I can't wait to get started. I don't have tons to lose but have been struggling to get it gone.

HCG Weight Loss Cure Guide 
 101 Worry - Free Hcg Diet Recipes Plus Hints & Tips From Experts: Great Taste Yet Strict Adherance To Dr. Simeons / Trudeau Hcg Protocol

Week 2, Day 4

I totally skipped the gym last night, but I didn't skip the workout!

I went home and cooked dinner and did the dishes and did a little web surfing. Then as I was watching my soap 'All My Children' I did a little working out from my new magazine. It is Health & Fitness edition from All You.
There was a great 20 min upper body and endurance building workout. I did break out a sweat and I wasn't expecting that. Today my shoulders are sore from the standing push-ups.
Basically it gave you several exercises to alternate between and how long to do each one. It felt like a mini class and had some kickboxing moves.
I was satisfied and will be doing that again.
Today is my off day. I need some sleep but really want to go see the movie Lovely Bones. Hmmm...maybe I can talk my hubby into it.

Week 2, Day 3

So it was Turbo Jam at the gym last night! Wasn't sure what it was but it turned out to be Kickboxing without the bag. It was an awesome workout and definitely a big calorie burner. I wish I had one of those heart rate monitors that do calories as well. One of these years I will invest in one. Just not now.

I started with about 5 min on the elliptical to warm up. The class was 45 min long and I was dripping when I left! I had 2 errands to run after the gym and all I wanted to do was shower.

Tonight I am off work a tad early so I am skipping a class and will just do the elliptical for about 30 min and then some weight machines.

On the home front we are doing some remodeling. Well not really remodeling but some beautifying. Some paint and some custom touches here and there. I was hoping to do before and after pics but my lovely wonderful hubby started the project before I could get a picture in. Oh well.
Have a good night all!

Contest Link to win Free Groceries for a year!!

Farmers Feed US

If you follow the above link you will be taken to the Farmers Feed US home page and you can enter your self into a contest to win $5000 in free groceries. AWESOME!

You do have to reside in a participating state and those are Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri and Ohio.

I will be entering daily myself. Who couldn't use a years worth of free groceries!

Week 2, Day 2....Bummer!

So I was all geared up to go to the Dance Mix class. It was a lot of fun last week and an amazing workout.
My husband calls me and says he has to bowl as the team will be short this week. It is a long story but I drive him to and from bowling which is no where close to home. So there went my workout.

In stead I did a little shopping. I went to Aldi and stocked up on fruit. They had some great prices and we needed some healthy snacks in the house. Then I managed to make my way to JoAnn's Fabric. Yeah I spent more than I wanted to for my browsing trip. I bought some manly fabrics to make my husband a rag quilt for Valentines day. That is the goal anyway. If you go to Sew4Home.com they have a project listed for the rag quilt for your hubby.

Tonight is Turbo Jam a the gym. I am not sure what the class is about yet but I am sure it will be good.
I just love my gym and the instructors!

Week 2, Day 1 down....WOW

So I went to the gym yesterday for a good work out and boy did I get one!
I started with about 5 min on the treadmill to warm up while waiting for the class to start.
The class was Body Basics and 45 min in length. It required a jump rope and 2 sets of weights, I picked 5lbs and 8lbs. Those didn't scare me as much as that jump rope did.

After a quick warm up we spent about 30 min going back and forth between that dreaded jump rope and the weights. So here is how it went.
1 min of jump rope then 16 reps with the weights
1 min of jump rope, 16 reps of weights
1 min of jump rope, 16 reps of weights...I think you get the picture. Then the last 15 min of the class were spent on abs and a cool down.
I was exhausted!!! I thought for sure I would trip on that jump rope and fall on my face. Thankfully I did not. I assure you I wasn't the only one that felt that way either.

It felt great to get such a good workout in and I am headed back tonight for the "Dance Mix Class".

On another note...I have found a crafty project I want to do but first I have to go buy me some flannel material. I would like to make a rag blanket like the one on Sew4Home.com. I think my hubby would love it for Valentines day. Maybe if I can find enough time I can make one for everyone in the house as well.

Monday Weigh In

So I didn't blog about days 5-7 but with not feeling well and pms I managed to not go to the gym.
I did however spend about 30 min on Sat doing crunches, squats and push-ups (girly style). I did my best to watch what I ate and drank my water.


Mondays Weigh in 01/11/2010: 143.6 (-2.2lb)
Measurements:
Neck: 13" same
Upper Arms: Both 11" same
Bust: 35" same
Waist at belly button: 30.0" (-0.5in)
Hips: 43.0" (-0.5in)

Result: -2.2lbs and 1" lost! Not bad for a first week!

Today is back to the gym after work. I have to keep this up. I am ready to finally shed these last pounds I have and tone up this body. I want to look awesome in my bikini this year! :o)

Snow day and Day 4

The kids are all home from school due to a snow day. I am not really sure exactly how much snow we got because the winds are blowing so hard there really is no way to measure. I had bare spots on some areas of my driveway then mounds of snow on the others. You can see where the wind swirls around my house!

Work opened late so I slept in. That was nice! I feel like I have been hit by a truck though. My head hurts and is all foggy feeling. My nose is about to fall off if I have to blow it one more time. I called the docs office to see if they will just call me out something for this sinus stuff. I have been using decongestants but they don't last long. Then my poor nose is in agony again.

I am not sure how much I will actually work out today due to feeling like I just want to climb into bed all bundled up.

Day 2 & 3

Day 2 of my goal:

10 min Elliptical
45 min Dance Mix Cardio class with some weights.

Food: Ahh...Pretty much the same as the day 1

Day 3:

Forget the gym! I can barely walk! I can hardly go from standing to sitting to use the toilet without almost crying out in pain! I feel like I need handrails in the bathroom.

I did however manage to chase the dog around our street because he thinks he needs to spread his scent around lately. So that got my heart rate up!

Also I have this sinus head cold thingy starting today and PMS! Not a good day for dieting or working out.
Tomorrow will be a better day.... I hope!

A little less me in 2010!

Well that is the plan anyway. I need to lose some where in the range of 20-30lbs.

GOALS:

• Short Term Goal: Lose 5lbs by Feb 1st (1 month)
• Long term goal: 20-30lbs or whatever feels comfortable in my clothes ( would like to lost a pant size or two)
• Exercise 3-4x's a week at the gym
• Eat sensible meals and healthy choices.
• Don't over indulge in sweets, just a nibble here or there.
• Drink pletny of water.
• Weigh in and measurements once a week.

Day 1 Jan 4th
Went to the gym for a  45 min cycling/scuplting class....bought kicked my butt! I didn't think I would be able to walk today but so far so good. I am a little sore but tolerable.

Breakfast: Oatmeal and whole wheat toast with a glass of Skim Milk
Lunch: Salad (from home) and a Plain McChicken sandwhich from McD's--I know not the healthiest but closest thing to work.
Snack: Apple and peanut butter
Dinner: Spaghetti and garlic bread
Sweet: Had a little bite of my super brownies that I made. I was tempted to eat a whole one but I did one bite!

Mondays Weigh in: 145.8
Measurements:
Neck: 13"
Upper Arms: Both 11"
Bust: 35"
Waist at belly button: 30.5"
Hips: 43.5"

Death by Chocolate...aka Super Brownies

My husband and children calls these 'Super Brownies' but they are actually 'Double Chocolate-Carmel-Fudge Brownies.'
I made these last night and I got the recipe from a friend. They are DELICIOUS!!! It is hard to eat just one.

Here is the recipe:

Filling:

1--(14 oz) pkg caramels, unwrapped

½ cup evaporated milk

Brownies (or just use a mix): (We use a mix)

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 eggs, slightly beaten

1 ¼ cups Gold Medal All-Purpose Flour

¾ cup unsweetened cocoa

¼ teaspoon salt

1--(11.5 or 12 oz) pkg (2 cups) semisweet chocolate chunks

1 ½ cups chopped pecans

1 teaspoon oil


1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x9 –inch pan. In small saucepan, combine caramels and milk; cook over low heat until caramels are melted and smooth, stirring frequently.

2. Melt butter in medium saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat. Add sugar, vanilla and eggs; blend well. Stir in flour, cocoa and salt; mix well. Stir in 1 ½ cups of the chocolate chunks and 1 cup of the pecans. Spoon and spread batter in greased pan.

3. Gently and evenly drizzle caramel filling over batter to prevent large pockets of caramel and to prevent caramel from reaching bottom of bars. Caramel can cover entire surface of batter.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 or 40 minutes or until set.

5. In small saucepan, melt remaining ½ cup chocolate chunks with oil over low heat, stirring until smooth. Drizzle over warm brownies. Sprinkle with remaining ½ cup pecans; press in lightly. Cool 20 minutes. Refrigerate 1 hour 30 minutes or until chocolate is set. Cut into squares. If refrigerated longer, let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before serving.

We can never let the cool completely before diving in!

76.55% saved at Walgreens

My first coupon trip of the year and Walgreens had some good sales and in store coupons that matched up with Manufacturer coupons.

Here is my bounty from my trip minus a hairbrush set my daughter had to have.

So to break it all down.

4 packs of Stayfree pads. 6.29 each minus B1G1 Free Manufacturer Coupon and then minus $3 each store coupon = $0.58 total

5 packages of Finish Electrosol Gel Packs. 3.49 each minus $2.50 Manufacturer coupon and gained $1 Register Reward for each box (done is separate transactions) = $4.95 got back $5 in RR

2 Reach Floss 3.79 each minus B1G1 Free MQ and minus $2 each store coupon = 0.21 overage

2 Reach Total Care toothbrushes 3.99 each minus B1G1 free MQ and minus $2 each store coupon = 0.01 overage

1 Box of Always Infinite (daughter had to have) 4.99 no coupons = $4.99

1 Bottle of L'Oreal Paris Face Cleanser $6.99 minus $2.00 MQ = $4.99

1 tube of Sensodyne Pronamel toothpaste $4.99 minus $1 MQ and $2 store coupon = $1.99

1 Goody Hair brush set (not pictured) $5.99

4 8oz jars of hunts tomato sauce 0.99 each minus 0.60 each store coupon = 1.56

Total before coupons: $85.09 and after coupons and Register Rewards and pre tax: $19.96 and still have $1RR left to use again.

I plan on going to get a few more deals later this week. I was thrilled for the savings and if my daughter hadn't been with me I would have less OOP (out of pocket). Gotta love kids though!

All coupons were from this Sundays news paper.

Oh and Happy New Year everyone!