Moving on up.

    Well, we got the house, so no more worrying about that. I have gotten stuff for the girls bathroom, and our bathroom as well as I got new bedding. I went to Kohl's because they had a huge buy one get one free sale on bath towels, rugs, pillows, and sheets. They also had sales on their other bedding, too. The girls' bathroom is going to be in bright colors with pink and purple as the primary colors. Ours is going to be browns and blues along with our bedding. Super excited. There are more things I need to get, but I need to wait until we get more money. This Friday coming up we should be getting our taxes and as soon as we get that we can sign our lease and transfer utilities, then move in. Can't wait. We are also going to be getting our new furniture then. SO excited.
    Well, I weighed myself yesterday. Kinda addicted to watching the scale go down. I had a stall so I cut back on the portions as well as the amount of artificial sweeteners I have been having. Found another beverage that I can drink, Diet Root Beer. It mostly masks the taste of the sweetener. I have lost 10 lbs so far! WAHOO. Only 8 more lbs to go til I hit my mini goal.
   Also found out when my sister in law is getting married. October 8th. Awesome. So I looked up flights and Miss Sam will be 3 then so we will have to buy her seat. :(. I am waiting on a stipend letter in order to make plans to go to the East coast. We want to work it out that we can visit my mom before flying back home. So we may have to board our dog, which I am leery about doing. We will see as the time comes near.
   Tuesdays will be my weekly update on my weight and measurements. I am thinking of posting some of the foods I have been eating because a friend of mine is wanting to do Atkins with me and I think it may help her on her journey. :)

New fave meal: Chili Cheese Dogs sans Buns.

 2 hot dogs (lowest amount of net carbs possible~ Hebrew National is a good one), cut up

 2 tbsp  hotdog sauce (chili) Wolf Brand I think. (lowest carb count possible)

 2 tbsp shredded cheddar cheese

 onions, minced

 yellow mustard

1. Place cut up hotdogs in bowl cover with your sauce and microwave until hot.

2. Sprinkle with cheese and onions and then drizzle with mustard.

3. Enjoy.

This is so good you won't miss the bun. Finish off with a nice cold Diet Dr. Pepper or Diet Root Beer. If you need something sweet, Sugar Free (SF) Jello is a great choice.

End of Week 2 of Induction

Personal Evaluation from Atkins Journal

Date: 1/12/11

Weight: 218.8

Bust: estimate 50

Waist: 43

Hips: 47

Upper Arms: 12.5

Thighs: 26

Date: 1/18/11

Weight: 216

Bust: estimate 50

Waist: 40.5

Hips: 46

Upper Arms: 12

Thighs: 26

Lost: 2.8 lbs, and 4inches

Date: 1/25/11

Weight: 209

Bust: estimate 47

Waist: 39

Hips: 46

Upper Arms: 11.5

Thighs: 25

Lost: 7lbs in one week and overall 9.8 lbs, 6 inches in one week and overall 10 inches.

Awesome. I am soo proud. I am resisting foods I love that isn't allowed plus I am beginning to enjoy unsweet tea with just a little bit of sweetner. Found my other go to beverages: Diet Dr. Pepper (in moderation), Crystal Light Pomegrante and Cherry (watered down). I need to get some deli meat, especially the peppered turkey. I am trying one new food a week. Loving all the fresh veggies too. I am excited about what is to come next. 

    New snack I am enjoying is tuna fish with olives, celery and mayo with celery to dip into it. Pepperonis and mozz. cheese melted to be a sorta pizza snack. Next time I'll melt it on a paper towel to cut some of the grease.

   Can't wait til the Spring so I can get out with the girls and get some fresh air. I really hate the cold weather. By then I should be confident in my diet as well as the shock has worn off from this diet on my body that some exercise won't be a big deal.

Hate the Sickies!

  Well, I woke up feeling like crap this morning. Sinus pain and congestion with runny nose. Ecck. Oh well. Just need to let it ride out and drink lots of chicken broth and try to get some rest. Thats kinda hard to do with Sam. Shes going 100 mph all the time.
  Yesterday, I had my appointment for the HSG test to check to see if the Essure fully closed of my tubes. The test wasn't as bad as I thought. My right tube is completely blocked, but the bad news is that my left one is still open. The tech. thinks that it will probably take about 6 months for it to close. I have to wait til my GYN calls to discuss what to do next. I can still get pregnant, which isnt something that we want.
  Later that afternoon, we went to look at a rental house. 3 bedrooms/2 baths/ 2 car garage, total of 1500 sqft heated for less than $700 a month. It was frickin huge. We turned in an application and hoping to hear back from the realtor we are working with to see if we got the house. Keeping fingers crossed we do!! We also filed our taxes and to get them something in the next 2 weeks so thats when we are hoping to move. We are also getting new furniture, which I cannot be more happy about. We have all of it picked out. The only thing is the misc. stuff we need to get.
 We went to Logans steak house for dinner. I am so PROUD of myself for resisting the yummy sweet yeast rolls they have. My hubby ate then in front of me too >:O which made me mad for choosing this place to  eat. I ordered a steak with grilled shrimp and veggie skewers with a salad (vinegrette on the side~ which I hardly touched), and an unsweet tea sweetened with a tad of splenda. The second tea I didn't need any sweetner in it, I guess I am getting over the need for sugar.
   Going to make spagetthi and meat balls for the family. But going to have veggies intead of the pasta !

A Wonderful Evening.

I decided since I got some extra cash I would take Little Miss Samantha out to get a hamburger that she has been wanting for days. So the family went to Red Robins in Fayetteville. I had never been there and it was a nice place, the waitress was lovely and the food was great. Since I am on the Atkins in the Induction Phase, I researched what they had on their menu before we went to get an idea before hand as to what I can actually eat safely. Their website had a customized thing that allowed you to pick and choose what you wanted on your meal and then with a push of a little Nutrition thing, I saw how many carbs were going to be in what I was going to order. It was AWESOME. I knew what I wanted and didn't even need to look at the menu. Sam LOVED her hamburger, but I won't be ordering her fries in the future~ the little weirdo doesn't care for them. LOL.  I had the Simply Grilled Chicken Salad without the croutons and bread with balsamic vinagrette on the side and an extra chicken breast. It was really good. I dipped my fork in the dressing in order to save on the carbs. I ordered an unsweet tea, but was brought a sweet tea, took a sip and I had a funny feeling because of the sugar in it that I hadnt had in like 4 days. The unsweet tea with a little sweet-n-low tasted better (which shocked me!) than the sweet tea and I LOVE me some sweet tea.
  Went to Target after dinner to see what they had on their ranks in the front of the store, you know, the ones with the $1 or so stuff. I got a pair of really cute Valentine's day socks for Sam and a pink lion for Payton that I think looks more like an orangatan. I looked at their bathroom stuff to see if I found anything I liked that would match our brown towels. They are soft and huge, but I dont like them. I found a few different ones~ brown and cream striped towels and brown and blueish striped color towels. Sam also picked out her 2 Minnie Mouse books. She loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Payton slept most of the time.
  Next we went to Walmart to pick up a few things fo my diet. I needed more sugar free Jello and was going to try the Atkins products like these bars similar to Snickers, which I am going to put in the freezer, and the vanilla shakes. I also got some more sugar free tea. Totally forgot my Crystal Light, but I'll live. I also got some deli meat~ peppered turkey breast (YUM!), roast beef and chicken breast as well as some provolone. Sam did so well eating her hamburger at dinner, she got a chocolate cupcake with blue frosting. It stained her face and hands. Then off to bed she went.
   Shes been on antibiotics since Monday for a presumed strep throat :(. That was a fun morning. ER at 630am on Monday. Just glad it was'nt something terrible like a sprained neck or pinched nerve. Poor baby. So far she has been doing good. Payton has a runny nose today, thinking it's teething. Or at least hoping that is what it is.
Well that was my evening. Hope everyones out in internet land was as wonderful. Getting some snow tomorrow so pictures of the girls in the snow will be coming soon.

Im excited.

   Well, I weighed myself not too long ago and I weighed 214 lbs. AWESOME!!! I hope it continues at this rate. Which is a total of 4.8 lbs lost.
   I cheated today by adding a tiny bit of breadcrumbs to my crabcakes because I didnt think it would be any good without it. Sam was acting crazy and I totally forgot to pick through the crabmeat and man, I wish I did. Oh, well. I have been doing good so far despite the breadcrumbs, but I don't really feel like I did anything wrong because if the fact that I have been doing so well otherwise. I am back on track, and will remain this way. I have another thing of crab meat so I will search even harder for a recipe that is Induction friendly. I also found a way to make the tea taste better: half it with water. SO MUCH BETTER.
  I got my student loan refund today and I am thinking of all the stuff I want to buy for our new place. Speaking of which I need to get on the ball about calling these different places to find out what we need to get into a nice place. I just have so much longer to wait til we will have the money to be able to actually give a deposit and everything. Sometimes it feels like it is a waste of my time to get my hopes up on a place and then it be rented by the time we get the extra money for the deposits and stuff. I am hoping we are staying in Springdale because I love the library here and Sam isnt going to be starting school anytime soon, so I still have time to find the perfect area near the school that we just love.  I am so excited about this year. New place, plus a new me with losing weigh. I am giddy about being able to go to a store and just get clothes and not feel like crap because nothing fits.
 I have like 5 months left of my degree and I will be done with school. I am so burnt out on it and what they are making me learn, which I dont feel is necessary for the job I want to do.
  I have ideas of what kind of decor I want for our new place and I cant wait to go shopping. I have a good amount of money to spend too which doesnt include any of the tax money. I have been saving! :) Which makes me even more proud of myself.
Well enough of that for now.  I leave you with a cute video of my little Payton.

TTFN!

So far...

Well since I have started the Atkins which was the 12th. I wasn't completely doing it right because I was trying to keep from having the dreaded withdrawals. My weight then was 218lbs. Ecck feel so bad I didn't loose all the weight from my pregnancy. Its all good though. I am on the diet completely. I slipped twice yesterday with a little bit of Sam's cookie and a drink from the juice that was in the fridge for Sam. I was tired of the funky taste from the sugar free tea. Wish Crystal light didn't use aspartame in it. I also had a drink of the juice today when I made Sam a glass. But I don't feel like I railroaded my progress any. I m having terrible cravings for the Mtn Dew, chinese food, and cheesecake.
Personal evaluation from the Atkins Journal:
1/12/11
Starting weight: 218.8
Starting size: 20+
Goal weight: 135
Goal size: 9 or something like that.
Measurements:
chest: estimate 50
waist: 43
hips: 47
upper arms: 12.5
thighs: 26
Week 1 Evaluation
Weight: 216
chest: 50 estimate
waist: 40.5
hips: 46
upper arms: 12
thighs: 26

That is -2.8 lbs and -4 inches in a week. :) I'm more than stoked about losing weight this way. Once the Spring comes I will be able to get out and play with the girls. I am soo looking forward to being skinny.
  

My girls

This picture was taken at the Jacksonville Zoo when we went to Florida to visit family and friends.

Samantha:
She has been going to the Little Gym since Sept 2010. She loves it. Miss Meggie is awesome with her. I want to keep her in it until she is 3 and transfer her to regular gymnastics. She is into photography as well. She is in the full-blown terrible twos. I am hoping to get her into preschool. I think she is going to absolutely love it. She is also fully potty-trained. YAY!!!

Payton:
She is cooing and scooting everywhere. She can go backwards and sometimes forwards in her walker as well. She has learned to do raspberries too. So sweet that little girl is. 

Love these girls soo much.

2011...

    Haven't been on here in a while. 2010 was a great year because I had my second little girl. I got to finish out the year in my hometown (Jacksonville, Florida) where my family got to meet my little girls for the first time. They also got to go to the beach and the zoo. It was a LONG great weekend, a Christmas present from my hubby. We also went up to my sister in laws house where she got to meet Payton for the first time. Wish we could have stayed a little longer.
  
  I have been having some stomach issues with heart burn where I think I may have an ulcer from stress. I also have been losing tons of hair from the lack of pregnancy hormones. I swear I should be bald by now. So I am hoping for a more stressfree life this year.

   I am thinking of doing the Atkins diet in order to lose weight and become healthier. I have heard that there are health issues concerning this diet, but I am not taking it to the extreme because I am still breastfeeding Payton (almost 5 months EBF!!!).  I want something for the rest of my life. I am hoping that the induction phase drops the weight quickly though, but I will be happy with any type of weight loss. I need to lose a lot of weight. I have seen the pictures taken from our vacation and I am seriously depressed with the way I look. Its funny how I am shaped. I have a skinny neck, arms, feet, calves. My shoulders are skinny too. Once I get a good handle on the weight loss when it comes to the food choices, I will start with exercising. Its hard for me to do most stuff because of how big I am.

 Resolutions/ Goals for 2011:
Be better organized.
Get new furniture.
Be more creative with Sam and Payton.
Lose weight.