Birthday Onesie Tutorial

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Good Morning Blogger Friends! 

So my little munchkin turned 2 on Wednesday. Time has flown. For his first birthday I made his "I am 1" onesie too. It was cute. I used camo and turquoise and did a little sewing, with a little help from my best friend. This year I had planned to do a TRAIN party and I wanted a cute shirt. Everything I found, on etsy, was more money then I wanted to spend. So... I decided to do it myself again.

I had no clue how to make it the way I wanted. I talked to a few friends and read a few things online and decided just do a a transfer. I was shocked that I could actually just print something on my computer and then put it on the shirt. Don't laugh! I know this is something all of you have probably done before... but I have not! I was excited. 

So the first thing I did was find the picture that I wanted. I wanted something with '2' on it. So I found the picture I wanted and typed up "Noah's chop-choo" 

The problem I had was figuring out how to get it to print in reflection mode. There were only five sheets of print paper in the pack I had purchased. I kept doing something wrong. I finally figured out how to change my print to reflection mode on my MAC and on the 5th sheet it came out right. So I cute out the picture and words... I had already been told to cut close to the picture so the paper doesn't show up.

Then I had to place the cut outs on the shirt where I wanted them. I had to check a few times to make sure that I had it straight... and then I ironed it on. I let the iron sit on each section for about 30 seconds and then continued to iron it a little longer.. I wanted to make sure it would stay. And it did!! 

This is the final product. It isn't EXACTLY what I was wanting for him. But it did the job. He liked it well enough... He is in love with choo-choo's so.. he loved the train on it.

CAN YOU HELP ME?

Now the problem I had and I am hoping someone can help me with it... he only wore it for like two hours. Half of the train started peeling off. Has anyone ever done this? Do you know why it did this? Do you know what I could have done differently? Help?

Don't forget about our Naturally-Nifty Linky Party #7

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Weight Loss Wednesday

Pin It Well....when Big Sis came up with the idea to start this series, I didn't think I would be writing much about me. Really I just planned to share some recipes or health tips with you all, but not tell you my story.  But here I am live on the blog, ready to be vulnerable! :-) So here goes nothing....

I have been active all of my life, I played sports starting at age 4-5 through my freshmen year of college. And since then I have been continually active through intramural sports, playing sports with friends, working out on my own, or just living an active life style.  I love being active, the way it makes you feel, the fun you have while doing it, etc.  To me though, I can be active in my daily routine, but working out is something different.  And although I also love working out and the feeling that gives your mind and body, it is not always easy.  Once you are on your own and don't have a team workout, you really have to push yourself.  I am constantly pushing myself out of the lazy zone and into workouts, it is not an easy thing to stay consistent in working out.

So since I stopped playing sports and started taking care of my body all on my own, I have probably been at a steady 150 lbs. and I am 5 feet 10 inches tall.  

I have never really struggled with my weight, but like I said I have mostly stayed active.  I do struggle a lot with eating well though.  I am a very picky eater, so eating healthy is really hard on me.  I barely like any vegetables, and I like fruit, but my favorite food literally is fried chicken.  I love it! And although I know places like this aren't good for you, I love eating chicken from McDonald's or Chicken Express.  My second favorite food if you can call it that, it would really be more of a snack would be chips and hot sauce or caso! Seriously I love it! I can eat it as meals and be totally fine with it! I mean since I have been on my own in life, I have tried to be pretty smart, like I would never just eat fast food, but I wouldn't mind eating it at times.  But I wouldn't say that I have ever lost control or let that be all that I eat.  No I don't have the gene that some people have where they can eat all junk food and be a cute little skinny girl :-) But by no means have I ever maintained a healthy eating pattern.

Anyways, so back to after my freshmen year in college, as far as I can remember I weighed for the most part around 150lbs.  Then my junior year in college I got engaged.  Starting then, I began working out more and taking care of myself! My main routine of working out was I spent a good part of the next two semesters getting up in the mornings at 6am with a friend and doing a workout called turbo jam.  Along with that I would drink my favorite protein smoothie as meal replacements. (You can find that at the bottom) This was such a good workout! Turbo Jam is such a fun workout and it WORKS! It is a mix between kickboxing and dancing and it is so fun! So anyways, I probably lost about 10 pounds and went into my wedding weighing 140lbs.  I remember I felt very good with myself.  I took Boudoir photos for my husband and I was not self-conscious at all.  I modeled my lingerie for some of my closest friends after my shower and I remember feeling very good about my body! Even on my honeymoon, I wore some size smalls in my bathing suits, (that is SO NOT normal for me). But really doing this workout with some running mixed in got me into really good shape.

After that time, I think I ended up gaining some wait and landed somewhere around 148lbs for a while during my first year and a half of marriage....sad I had lost that weight and then gained it back, but okay that it wasn't more than what I had normally been used to.

Then came August 2011 when Meguell and my life's changed a lot.  We were going on our second year of marriage, I work full time, I go to graduate school at night, we are leaders in the college ministry at our church, and then we decided to become host parents to three Asian high school boys.  It is a very fun and challenging all at the same time. (You can read about that hear at Life Changing, or Neglect) Anyways, something about the busyness of my life these past 8 months has really taken a toll on me.  It was last week after Spring Break that I was sitting at my house and realized...."Wow, my body is really getting out of control..." My eating habits had gone off the deep end, I feel like anytime I craved something I would make an excuse and say that it wouldn't effect my body that much and then I would just eat it.  Especially sweets...I love sweets, and I feel like a lot of it was going to parties or lifegroup or birthdays at work when there were free cookies or cupcakes and I literally lost all sense of self control! It was ridiculous! It was then that I realized I needed to change some things....especially since now the scale was reading 170lbs. Wow there it is....the vulnerable place :-) Really though, I couldn't believe my body had gotten that out of hand, and with summer coming up around the corner and planning a trip to the beach, I couldn't imagine wanting to be in a swimsuit....or that any of the swimsuits I already owned would even fit me.

So my sister and I spoke about this and I got inspired...I have to change things! I went grocery shopping last week and was very aware of what I was buying.  I have already started eating better and can feel a difference in my body already.  I have been more consistent on working out, not doing it two times one week then again 3 weeks later...I have even made everyday activities more physical and fun! And my sister, mom and I have decided to really kick this off by doing a cleanse.  We have chosen the Advocare Herbal Cleanse.  This cleanse lasts for 10 days and still allows you to eat food.  We will be starting it sometime soon and will let you know next week on WLW how it is going!

Anyways, so I am on an endeavor to get in better shape, shed some pounds, and be happy with my body! Since I have made myself stop eating sweets, I have seen the scale go down three pounds.  I really think a lot of the sweets I have been eating daily made my weight go up quickly.  And since Easter is my favorite holiday and I love Starburst Jelly Beans, this is going to be challenging haha! 

Anyways, we hope that you enjoy walking with us in our journey! 

So here's a great Smoothie Recipe for you! ENJOY! 

Peanut-Butter, Chocolate, Banana Smoothie

1 cup of milk

1 sliced banana

1 scoop of chocolate protein powder (or your flavor choice)

1 teaspoon of peanut butter

1 teaspoon of flaxseed (optional)

1 teaspoon of fiber powder (optional)

1 cup of ice

Add all of this in a blender until it is blended smoothly then drink up! 

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Naturally-Nifty Linky Party #7

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What a great weekend we both had! We are happy to be getting back into the groove of life since Spring Break and so excited about all of the awesome links that we have been getting from you guys! Keep them coming! After looking through all of the lovely links that you shared last week we have both picked some of our favs! I hope everyone enjoys them as much as we do! 

We can't wait to see what everyone has in store for this week!

Remember....

Please SUBSCRIBE to our blog on the left sidebar!

Also, I hope you have noticed our new blog layout, and we have moved our Naturally-Nifty Party Buttons to the top tab, so take one of those and put it on your blog!

And please stop by our FACEBOOK page and like us there too!

So have fun and be sure to visit other great posts that are linked up and come back and LIKE your favs! We will feature some of our favorites next week and we will feature a Reader's Choice Favorite!

P.S. Link up as many projects as you want to!

Here are our top favs from last week! If you are featured be sure to grab a Featured Button from the top tabs! Also we will be pinning this your blog posts on our Pinterest! 

1. Hani over at Craftionary brought to us 100 different Easter Printables. Of course I loooooved this link. Did I look through all of them, I sure did! There were some really awesome ideas that I can use for my daycare kids! I love all of the different crafts and printables. Thank you Hani for all of the time you put into getting all of the links on that blog. There are some really awesome ideas! -Big Sis

2. I am so excited that CheWei over at One Dog Woof came on over to our link party. I found this on her blog and invited her to bring it to us! I love this print off... and I am so excited to have it in my very own white frame. It is so precious and such a GREAT reminder of what EASTER is all about! I hope you enjoy this just as much as I did! -Big Sis

I love these vinyl everyday labels made by Life, Love, Green. She did an awesome job at making them fun, and helpful! Definitely stop by and check out the before and after pics.  I am sure that most of us are just living with our mediocre labeled containers at home, written on with tape and markers, when we could just pull out our cutting machine and make great labels like this! Thanks so much for sharing! -Little Sis

Donata over at DK's Craft Cafe really does know how to make a beautiful craft from trash! This awesome wreath was made out of some great items that she had that others may have just thrown out! I will just tell you that one part of it is straight up styrofoam! You will have to go visit her to check out what the rest of it is! She did a great job, and I love the finished product! -Little Sis

My Little Pumpkin by Jazmin did a great job at recycling old crayons! Instead of throwing out the small broken pieces that you can barely hold, keep them and make your own crayons! She even did hers in a fun shape! Stop by to check out the step-by-step instructions on how to do this! Your kiddos will love it! -Little Sis

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Rocking Chair

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*Some of you may have read this on my personal blog before, but it is something that I wanted to share*

As I sat with my tired little boy today and began to rock him, my mind began to wander... and for the remainder of today I have just thought and thought and thought about this theme... the Rocking Chair. Just bare with me.

I have loved rocking my sweet one since the day he was born. Actually, I spent many hours rocking him, in his nursery, while I was pregnant. After my brother died, I would spend a lot of time in that room remembering, wishing, crying- alone. I love rocking my baby, in the womb and out. Today I started thinking that I don't rock him enough. I began to dread when he is too old to want me to rock him... or too big to sit in the rocking chair with me. I am so thankful for these sweet times in the rocking chair. He is so busy now that he really only lets me when he is tired, upset, or sleeping. But I love it nonetheless.

Then my mind went to my mom and how she doesn't have that luxury of having her son around anymore to rock even if she wanted, he wanted, or he was small enough. My heart hurt for my mom and made me hold my baby boy even tighter. The pain my sweet mom must have felt when she heard the news that her son, her baby boy, was taken from this world. My mom is truly the strongest woman I know and I hate she had to go through this.. continues to go through this. I hate that all my mom has left are memories of rocking her baby. I know she has such great memories though. My mom, along with all of the other moms that have lost their child way too early in life.... my heart hurts, but I pray they all have great memories of rocking their child.

What about those moms that never got to rock their baby? Those moms that prepared for the arrival of their bundle of joy only to have their baby taken from them as soon as they delivered. Or the mom that lost her life giving birth to that baby that would not be able to walk with their mom. Or the mom that never got the chance to truly embrace the joys of pregnancy or dream of rocking their baby. The mom that wasn't able to hold their baby as they grew and rock them to console them, to put them to sleep, just to love them. And my heart hurt.

What about the moms that have been able to bask in the greatness of pregnancy and a newborn? The moms that, like me, have enjoyed rocking their sweet one, day in and day out. But the same moms that get the terrible news as their baby is growing that their baby is not going to make it? The moms that have to rock their baby until they can't rock anymore because they don't know how much longer they really have. Again, my heart hurts. What about those moms?

What about the women that have tried for months or years to have that baby to rock? Those women that have put their whole being into trying to have that baby to rock- but can't? These women that can only dream of seeing those two lines on a test, seeing their first ultrasound, watching their belly grow, feeling that first kick, feeling the onset of labor, and birthing a baby? The women that can only DREAM of having that child of their own to rock in that special rocking chair. My heart hurts.

What about the women that have lost their sweet husband before they were able to have that baby together. The women that had already planned what their life was going to be like with their sweet man and then he doesn't come home from war, from work, from errands? The woman that will never be able to share in that with the man of her dreams because he was taken all too soon from him. What about them? It hurts my heart.

Then my mind began to think about those babies, kids, young adults that have never had the luxury of having a Mommy rock them. Never having a mom that cared enough to treat them the way I treat my baby. To have a mom love them the way I love my baby. To have a mom dote on them like I do mine. What about those babies that grow into adults and struggle on a daily basis because they didn't have a mom like I did, like I want to be? What about those kids?

Or the babies that have lost their Mom way too soon... at birth or after and have never been able to have their mom rock them, hold them, love them. What about them? What happens?

Then it hit me. It hit me today like a ton of bricks. It comes from the song I sang many times in my Youth Choir and Drama "Jesus has a Rocking Chair." How often I forget that. I forget to let Jesus Christ rock me during the good times and the bad times. The amazing feeling I get when rocking my sweet boy is only a grain of what the Lord feels when I ALLOW Him to rock me. Why don't I give up and let Him? WHY do I struggle with this so much? Am I the only one that struggles so bad with this?

In each example that I talked about above, I know someone personally that has been there. Did they, are they letting Jesus rock them? Why do I have such little faith? I know that the Lord wants to love me, admire me, dote on me, smile with me, laugh with me, cry with me, hold me, and rock me- just like I do my sweet one. Why is it so hard to let him.

My girlfriend has a sweet daughter that rocks herself to sleep. We laugh about it. But I began to think about this again this afternoon... maybe she is just feeling the arms of Christ around her and the comfortableness of Him... as she rocks herself to sleep. Oh ye' of little faith. Maybe I should begin rocking myself to sleep as I pray to the Lord. I am positive that He will help me understand that He is right there with me, with his arms around me, rocking me.

The rocking chair is so important to me. I don't think I will ever sit in our rocking chair again without thinking about all my thoughts today. Putting it on paper just does not give my thoughts justice. I have had so many thoughts with it. Jesus is here to rock me. When I feel like I can't go on, that my heart is broken, that I am tired of trying, that I don't know where to turn, HE is here rocking me. I need to feel it. Lean upon Him. Rest in Him. Let Him.

What about you?

"Jesus Has a Rocking Chair"

Many hopeful Moms and Dads try to have a child of their own,
some never get the chance, others do and see them grow

There are some who are expecting that precious baby soon

but then it's gone before it ever leaves the safety of it's momas' womb

JESUS has a rocking chair and HE holds that precious baby with oh such tender care
HE takes the place of Mom and Dad, HE's the greatest parent a child could have
Don't worry about the children there, JESUS has a rocking chair

There are those who have a boy or girl a lovely gift of GOD,
But sickness or a tragedy takes them from their parents arms,
Mommas wish for days gone by, daddys long for that lost child
But children are not lost when you know where they are

JESUS has a rocking chair and HE holds that precious baby with oh such tender care
HE takes the place of Mom and Dad, HE's the greatest parent a child could have
Don't worry about the children there, JESUS has a rocking chair

She was 18 and not married,expecting her little one
But in her time of confusion she took the life of her son
Since then, JESUS forgave her and HE took all of her shame away
Still she cries missing her baby but she hears the angels say

JESUS has a rocking chair and HE holds that precious baby with oh such tender care
HE takes the place of Mom and Dad, HE's the greatest parent a child could have
Don't worry about the children there, JESUS has a rocking chair

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Garage Sale Saturday!

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So today in West Texas it is beautiful! It straight up feels like summer time! I love it! 

So yesterday my husband told me randomly that he wanted to go to garage sales this weekend! I am all for this! I absolutely love finding treasure in other people's junk....especially when it comes with such a bargain! I grew up going to garage sales with my Grandma all the time! She would circle them all in the newspaper, and we would go, and we would always do a slow drive by to see what they had before stopping.  If you are a garage saler then you KNOW what I'm talking about! :-) And after looking around for a while she would always say "Well Britt...did you find anything you can't live without...?" ha ha I always remember that line.  Most of the time I was at the $0.10 or $0.25 box full of toys, since I was so young, so usually I got something ha ha I loved it! 

Anyways, this question from my husband took me off guard because this is not something he normally does or desires to do, but it got me pretty excited.  

So this morning we woke up earlier than normal and decided to ride our bikes around our neighborhood.  There were multiple Garage Sales just down the street from our house.  Meguell told people that we rode our bikes so I couldn't buy a lot, but really it was just such a nice day, why not!! 

So we got a little ride in this morning and soon we are going down to the trails by our house to go for a more strenuous ride! It's a great work out and a pretty challenging ride! 

Anyways, so at the first garage sale, this is what I found! 

I LOVE WREATHS! And actually my husband spotted these wreath forms.  You can't totally tell here, but they are mini wreaths.  Anyways, I snagged these plus a package of ten bath bars (like bath salts stones) for $0.25 each! Spending a total of $1 at our first stop! 

Next....we got this Outdoor Camel Back backpack with a bladder.  We have one and we like to take them with us when we go on trips, or when we go bike riding, so now we can both have one! This costs us only $3! 

(btw I am having trouble turning this photo, any tips on how to do it in blogger would be greatly appreciated!) 

Next we left the house to go grocery shopping at Sam's, and I remembered that this was the weekend of the biggest Garage Sale in Abilene! A local church does a yearly garage sale to raise funds for their Youth Choir Trip, and it is held in an old department store! I mean HUGE!! With tons of stuff! They prepare all year long! It starts on Thursday night and you pay $5 to get in, then Friday and Saturday you don't pay to get in.  We went right before they closed so there wasn't as much as normal there, but everything was HALF OFF!! ya!!! So here's what we got! 

A BREAD MAKER!

My friend got one at a garage sale 3-4 years ago and she loved it! 

At that time I wouldn't have been that interested, but now I love it! And it works, and I got it for only $2.50!! Just needs to be cleaned up and then my first bread to make is going to be a cinnamon bread...maybe with some pecans! yummy! 

This next item is probably my favorite....also something my husband saw and pointed me to! 

 I got this awesome old fashioned camera.  I have two others I got from a garage sale several years ago! I love photos, and I think this is a fun thing to collect...I mean now I only have three, but still they are so fun! I only paid $2.50 for this too! 

I stuck it on my mantel here, but that is not how it will stay, my mantel needs some work at this point anyways, I just have to figure out what I want to do! But I love this camera! 

Now we are just hanging out! I have cleaned up the house, and my husband is outside planting flowers. 

He has really gotten into gardening lately, which I love! I love flowers, and I like to plant them, but not as much as he does, so I just let him! He is good at it too, and it makes our house look great! Now if we could just keep our cute pup from eating our plants he bought for the backyard! 

I hope you had as great of a Saturday as I have had so far....and it's not even over! What a great weekend! 

-Little Sis

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Homemade Rock Candy

Pin It I had such a great time with my mom, aunt, and niece here. It is always so hard when family leaves... makes me want to live closer. But then I know this is the life that the Lord has given me and I am where I am for a reason! :) I can't wait to see them again though. We did a lot of things when they were here and one of the things we did was visit the Sacramento Zoo. When it was over we went into the Gift Shop and my niece found some Rock Candy that she wanted. We talked her out of it for two reasons-- I didn't want her to eat it in the car and my baby would want one of the two she got for $6. I promised her we would make it one day this week. And make it we did!

You are going to need a pot, measuring cups, and a cookie sheet. 

Ingredients:

3 3/4 c. SUGAR

1 1/4 c. KARO SYRUP

1 c. WATER

OIL FLAVORING (cinnamon, peppermint, oil) We used chocolate

FOOD COLORING (We picked red)

So the first step is to mix ALL ingredients and boil it for about 10 minutes. You want to boil it until hard crack stage which is between 300-310 degrees F. on a candy thermometer. I actually boiled it for about 15 minutes because I could not find my thermometer.. Then I did the cold water test (google it, it is simple).

So the niece chose to use chocolate flavoring. I highly recommend NOT doing that. It really wasn't that tasty... to me! She also wanted to do red. It made it super dark and you could only tell it was red in the direct light- but it was very pretty! 

Once it has reached the hard crack stage you add the oil flavoring and coloring. And mix it! 

Before you put it on the cookie sheet put powdered sugar on it. Then you will let it cool as it hardens. This took about 15-20 minutes. 

I also put powdered sugar on top of it for fun! :) 

It is recommended that you put pieces in a bag to break it up. I RECOMMEND doing so as well. I started doing it with my hands and the first break I cut my hand.. and it cut! It even scabbed over. It was very, very sharp. But I ended up getting our meat beater kitchen tool out and used it to break it apart. It worked well. 

You can see me moving the rock candy and breaking it into bigger pieces before breaking into the smaller rock candies. 

WOW! See that shiny side.. it was so sharp. CAREFUL NOW! 

Below you see the final result- our rock candy. The niece was a bit disappointed that it didn't look like store bought rock candy, but I would do it over in a heart beat. We had so much fun. There are tons of other recipes out there and if I ever try this again I will do one that takes longer to make. We only had a few hours and we needed it finished since we waited until the last night to do it! :0 So I searched for a FAST rock candy recipe. I do plan to try this again though and would like to master it. I am sure the niece would love to have some... that looked right! This rock candy looks like broken glass... 

 I miss them like crazy. I can't wait to visit with them again- either here or there! 

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Weightloss Wednesday!

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Weight Loss Wednesday- MY STORY (Big Sis)

I am so excited to share this journey with you guys!! I hope my journey can help someone as they are starting their journey or going through it as I am! I, like many, have always struggled with my weight. In High School I was definitely the big girl. Nothing inside of me would go back to the years of High School. It was not enjoyable to me. I had many friends... but I do not feel during those years in my life I had any REAL, DEEP friendships. Something stupid happened when I was ending my 9th grade year and I let it affect a lot of who I was... I quit everything I had been involved in.... and just really pulled away from any good friends that I did have. I am so thankful that God brought my husband to me when I was 16 years old... because he was my closest friend during those harder years. I have wanted to go to my 10 year reunion- but the closer we get, I am not sure I do want to go... anyone that was important to me then still keeps in touch with me and I know I don't need a reunion to see them, even if that is only like two girls, haha! :)

My husband and I when I was at my ideal weight in 2007.

My son and I... last week.... not at my ideal weight 2012! 

*Pictures during the blog were taken from 2007-2009*

I went to college and added that Freshman 15 PLUS some. I really got up there in weight. To this day I do not know how my husband could marry me. I was over 220lbs and I am only like 5'3. I think I have used food to suppress all of my emotions. When I am happy- EAT! When I am mad- EAT! When I am sad-EAT! Anything... EAT! Food use to be a constant on my mind... and if I don't stay focused, it still can be. When my family is together- we all eat! LaFinca, anyone? Anyways- I have always, always been the BIGGER FRIEND. In 2007 I graduated with my teaching degree and decided I would NOT be that fat teacher. I wanted to be the cuter, young teacher. I lost a lot of weight.... Got down to my lowest of 147. It felt awesome to fit into clothes- fit into anything... and my goodness.. TO NOT be in the double digits in pants- Can I get an AMEN!? 

I loved life ... but was still so focused on my weight that I never could enjoy the fact that I truly was not that obese/overweight girl anymore. I didn't see the beauty in ME! Makes me sick today... I wish I had realized and REMEMBERED how much work it was and did not let myself go. I loved my first year of teaching- I met an amazing friend and I am soooooo soooooo sad that we are not together anymore. I felt great. I even ran a half marathon in 2007... Overall it was great.... then in 2008 we went to Japan! :) And..... I ate. I LOOOOOVED the food! I only put on about 15lbs there before I got pregnant.. but still that is 15lbs that I am still trying to get off. Although I had gained weight and enjoyed their food- I still FAITHFULLY worked out- sometimes two times a day... I was always trying to get back to that 150 range! But I was still loving life. Nothing was holding me back for sure. I had an amazing teaching job and had made some forever friends that became my family. Life was good. 

In 2009 we went on an adventure. We had went to Tokyo to climb Mt. Fuji.. and we did. It was wonderful. Even more wonderful THAT I could do it... and be the second couple with our group to finish! I did it, I was still in shape. I felt awesome. The night after we climbed Mt. Fuji I did something I NEVER do. I went to the hotel bar with my husband and had a couple of drinks. Then we went back to our room and I enjoyed a glass of wine. We had taken a tour with our base and had to take the bus trip back to our base up North.. It was a good 10 hour ride! However, I was so nauseous and sick the whole time. About three hours into the trip, ON THE TOUR BASE, I started throwing up. Bless my husbands' heart... he was so great at cleaning it up. I know it was so embarrassing because we were with so many people that we did not know! :) I didn't feel well pretty much the whole trip. 

The next morning I was telling a friend about our trip and telling her how I got sick. Of course her response was 'are you pregnant?' Haha. I was like- uh, no! However, after five home tests the doctor confirmed that I was pregnant. SHUT UP!!! Us, who had been married seven years... having a baby!??! I was five weeks pregnant and had just climbed Mt. Fuji. It is so funny... I truly had no clue. How exciting. So I did pretty well in regards to eating while I was pregnant.. I quit working out for sure, because I am lame like that! :) Between working full time and being pregnant- I was tired. I didn't really gain most of my weight until the end.. and I blew up. BUT by the time my monkey was two weeks old I was down in the 170s.. where I started... only up five pounds. It was exciting... 

But I never, EVER, claimed control on myself again. My booger turns two next week.. and here I sit almost where I was years ago. Sad and sickening. I remember in September or October of 2009 I was skyping with my mom and brother and he was laughing at me. He was telling me how they were looking at old pictures and how he was just shocked that I was so FAT! I can take this from him because he meant it all in love and humor... and it did not bother me, because at that point, I was pregnant and I had not gained the weight back. He had told me how proud he was of me... I am so thankful that he can't see from heaven that I have done it again... I am still working on the days when I get consumed with memories of my big brother, to go somewhere besides food. While my mom was here last week she was taking pictures and I told her that I don't like my pictures and I am just so big. She assured me I am not. I told her that she just loves me and I reminded her of when her and my brother looked at pictures when I was younger.. and were shocked. I told her that when I do this again she will look back to those pictures in San Francisco and be shocked that I was really that big. Isn't it funny that when you TRULY love someone- you don't see their weight- but you see what they are from the inside? How many of us can say we love someone like that! 

But here I am! Happy Weight Loss Wednesday! You now know my story. I have been trying for a few months to get my mojo back and get started... and slowly I have lost a pound here or there... and I am so encouraged that my blogging friends will be taking this journey with me. I welcome your ideas, tips, struggles as well. Let's do this, friends! 

One of my favorite things to eat is TILAPIA! I know a lot of people don't care for fish... but I enjoy it. Not to mention, when I eat it- I see such a great loss. Eggs, Fish, Chicken- sign me up! :) One of my favorite Tilapia recipes 

that my family also enjoys is Parmesan Tilapia. I will be sharing the recipe at the end of the blog. First I wanted to share with you a list of 50 reasons I will do this!!! I hope you enjoy... 

Reasons I WILL Lose Weight and Achieve Optimal Health

1.   I want to feel good about myself for the first time in my life.

2.   I want my husband to feel proud of me on his arm.

3.   I want to be able to run and play with Noah and not lose energy.

4.   I want to make Shane proud again, even though he isn’t on this earth anymore. I remember how proud he was of me when I lost all my weight a few years ago. (Miss my brother)

5.   I want a better sex life!

6.   I don’t want to feel my fat shake.

7.   I want to feel beautiful for the first time in my life.

8.   I want Nathan to think I am beautiful.

9.   I don’t ever want Noah to tell me that my belly is big.

10.    I don’t want to be embarrassed in public.

11.    I want to be able to wear anything that is in my closet.

12.    I want to enjoy shopping.

13.    I want to shop at Victoria’s Secret.

14.    I would love to share clothes with my sister. 

15.    I want to live a long, healthy life.

16.    I want Nate to be physically attracted to me where he can’t get enough of me.

17.    I don’t want to feel intimidated around other women.

18.    I want Nate to be proud of what I have done.

19.    I want Noah to be proud of me as his Mommy.

20.    I want to be “cute” pregnant with our next baby.

21.    I want to strip for my husband.

22.    I want to dance with Nate and not feel self conscious. 

23.    I want to think that I look good in pictures. 

24.    I don’t want to be the “fat girl” anymore.

25.    I want to be active again.

26.    I want to be the cool, fit Mom.

27.     I want to go to a formal, like the Air Force ball, with Nathan.

28.    I want to live a life of being skinny. 

29.    I don’t want to be losing weight forever. 

30.    I want to be successful. 

31.    I want to smile and be happy, honestly. 

32.    I hate me and I want to love me! 

33.    I have so much potential, I want to use it! 

34.    I want to be a good role model to Noah.

35.    I want to be a good role model for my students. 

36.    I want to break free from the chains that food has held over me for all of these years. 

37.    I want to walk proud. 

38.    I want to have a nice stomach, even with my scars from surgery. 

39.    I want to feel comfortable to go to a pool with my husband and son. 

40.    I would love to run another half marathon.

41.    I want to do family runs, bike rides, hikes, etc. 

42.    I want to let the girl that has been hidden inside me for all my life, out!

43.    I want to feel comfortable having sex… 

44.    I want to WANT to leave the lights on… 

45.    I want to share clothes with my friends. 

46.    I have been successful in a lot of areas of my life- I want to be successful in this area as well. 

47.    I want to wear my heels comfortably again.

48.    I want to be the pretty teacher again. 

49.    I want to rely on food for survival only and get rid of the addiction I have. I have used it as an emotional crutch for too long. 

50.    I want to who God created me to be me!

*Pictures below were from Last Week*

Now for that recipe! 

Parmesean Tilapia

What you need:

• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/8 teaspoon celery salt
• 2 pounds tilapia fillets

Directions

1. Preheat your oven's broiler. Grease a broiling pan or line pan with aluminum foil.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise and lemon juice. Season with dried basil, pepper, onion powder and celery salt. Mix well and set aside.
3. Arrange fillets in a single layer on the prepared pan. Broil a few inches from the heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the fillets over and broil for a couple more minutes. Remove the fillets from the oven and cover them with the Parmesan cheese mixture on the top side. Broil for 2 more minutes or until the topping is browned and fish flakes easily with a fork. Be careful not to over cook the fish.

Taken from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/broiled-tilapia-parmesan/

WLW Stats:

Starting Weight: XXX (held private for now)

Wed. 3/21: -13lbs


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