Hope for Spring

I love that you can see buds have formed under those frozen branches. It gives me hope that spring will arrive eventually.

Go to Lisa's Chaos to play along and check out more macro shots.

Blizzard Blog Hop 2011

I'm the mommy of superheroes.

Meet Princess Little Kitten also know as Caitlin.

Meet Davey. I'm not sure what kind of superhero he is. But he is cute as heck.

Then, there is Dave and me. We were college sweethearts. We have grown up together and now are growing up our two wonderfully challenging kids. Dave and I spend most of our time having fun with the kids but we do make time for weekly dates. Most of them occur in our house when the kids are sleeping but they definitely help us stay connected.

If you come back to visit, you can expect to read about the adventures of my kids, see some of my photography ( I love taking photos), read about my fitness battles, and get ideas for date nights. Thanks for visiting and hope you come back. Go to Household 6 Diva to meet more blog hoppers.

Aggggghhhhh!

I feel like a failure when it comes to losing weight. I gained a pound. I did pretty well with the diet. I resisted temptation at the Cheesecake Factory on Saturday. But when my husband had to go away on business Monday through Thursday, I didn't do as well. I definitely ate emotionally. I even recognized I was doing it at the time. I didn't care enough to stop at the time. Maybe this 1 pound gain will help remind me that it does matter next time I'm tempted.

I also battled a cold this week. I did workout but I gave myself permission to take it easy. I've read that you can continue working out when sick if symptoms are from the neck up.

Here's what I did:
Friday-rest
Saturday- elliptical 45 minutes
Sunday-rest
Monday-elliptical 45 minutes
Tuesday-Circuit training for 28 minutes (That is the only free time I had to go to the gym due to school delays but regular preschool pickup time.)
Wednesday-elliptical 60 minutes
Thursday-rest

So I vow to track my calories better and workout more intensely next week. I need some inspiration. I think I need to print that photo my husband took of me bowling. I'm glad he likes my tush but I don't. That probably will do it.

How'd you do this week?

Shadows and Reading

I like how tall and thin I look here ;)

Join the year long challenge of getting yourself in the photo at Diary of a Church Lady. You won't regret it. This is 45/52 for me.

I love seeing Davey's love of reading grow. I also love how much he loves trains. He is reading his train book on his train table.

Go to Simply Modern Mom to share photos of what motherhood is like each week. This is 4/52 for me.

He Dressed Himself!

I'm just happy he is starting to dress himself.

Be sure to head over to see what all the other cool kids are wearing at Feet Off the Table. Check out more wordless at 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, A Beautiful Mess and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos.

Bowling Date

We took advantage of Dave working from home and the kids being in school and went bowling at 9am. We definitely were a little rusty since we go bowling once every couple of years. It was fun. Dave and I get competitive when playing any sort of game. We played two games. We each won a game. I think we will go back to the bowling alley soon to determine the "champion."

Another bonus of bowling at 9 am is you feel like a spring chicken. We were the youngest people in the alley by about 20 years.
Being competitve with my husband makes me happy. Be sure to go Leigh vs Laundry to see more photos that are bound to make you happy.

This is date 41 out of 52 for us. Go to Simply Modern Mom to join in on the fun. Simply Mom is no longer posting weekly dates but I still want to finish the project.

That Kid Crying at the Happiest Place on Earth

She'll be mine. I'm fairly terrified for our upcoming trip to Disney World.

We went out to lunch to celebrate my parents' anniversary, dad's birthday, and sister in law's birthday. We went to a "fancy" restaurant for us. No crayons and clothe napkins. So it was pretty fancy for us. The kids played bumper cars in the booth. Annoying but it was ok. Then the whining started. Caitlin complaining Davey was touching her despite her practically sitting in his seat. Finally I realized my mistake of letting them sit together. I moved Davey and become the buffer zone. Then Caitlin complains about her dinner. She ordered grilled cheese but it was not up to her high standards. She does eat enough to order dessert. She orders strawberry cheesecake but freaks out when the glazed strawberries touch whip cream. I try to wipe them clean but she is inconsolable.

This lunch made me question my ability to parent. It was so miserable. I felt like a failure because of the way she was behaving. Caitlin can somehow take a fun event and make everyone around her miserable. There is only so much whining a parent can take.

I'm scared that on our upcoming trip to Disney that she will still be miserable. It is too late to change our plans now. So wish me luck that Caitlin can be happy at the happiest place on earth.

Always Hungry

One of the things I hate the most about dieting/changing my eating habits is being hungry. It seems like I'm always hungry. I try to repeat the Weight Watchers motto, "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels." That may be true but when you stomach is growling it is hard to believe it. I know that this is temporary. I know that my body will adjust as I lose the weight. I'm trying to eat higher quality foods so that I am not as hungry. Those empty foods have too many calories and don't fill you up. So fruit and salads are my friends. I try to have some protein at each meal. That does help too.

I only made it to the gym once this week due to a tremendous ice storm and busy work schedule. But I did workout at home. Here's what I did this week:

Friday-Rest
Saturday-Elliptical 52 minutes
Sunday-Rest
Monday-elliptical 55 minutes
Tuesday-Elliptical 25 minutes and Jillian Michael's Shred It With Weights (25 minutes @ level 1)
Wednesday-Elliptical 55 minutes
Thursday-Circuit 30 minutes and jog 20 minutes

Jillian Michael's Shred It With Weights is a kettlebell workout. It was deceivingly effective. It was hard but not swearing at the TV hard like the originial 30 Day Shred. However, the next two days, my hamstrings were incredibly sore. Too be fair, I used a kettlebell that was 10lbs. I probably should have started with a lighter kettlebell. Jillian suggests using a 3-8lbs.

I'm down 1 1/2 lbs. this week. I've lost 5lbs. since I've started. I wish it would come off quicker but I'm happy that it is coming off at all.

How was your week?

Dates and The Stomach Bug

This is a shot of me and my boy getting ready to go out on a date. Dave and I try to take the kids out one on one for some extra attention. We had a great craft time and lunch.


Join the year long challenge of getting yourself in the photo at Diary of a Church Lady. You won't regret it. This is 44/52 for me.

Taking care of sick kids is part of motherhood. This shot of Davey was from when he had the stomach bug and was just so exhausted that he napped twice. The bug got everyone but me. *Knock wood*

Go to Simply Modern Mom to share photos of what motherhood is like each week. This is 3/52 for me.

Ice Ice Baby!

The snow and the ice are pretty but I'm ready for spring.

Check out more wordless at 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, A Beautiful Mess and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos.

Snow Girl

My snow loving girl's smile makes me happy.

Be sure to go Leigh vs Laundry to see more photos that are bound to make you happy.

My Own Little Plow

My own little plow.

Go to Camera Critters for more fun animal shots.

Saturday 6

* How do you feel about the death penalty?
I support the death penalty. There are some people who just don't deserve to live after causing so much pain and death. You definitely need to take circumstances into account too.

* Did you make a New Year's resolution? If so--what!?
My resolution is to eat healthy and get in good shape. So far, so good. Join me on Fridays for Fitness Fridays to see how I'm doing and share your own fitness challenges.

* Why do women take men on Maury for paternity tests when they know DAMN well that Maury is going to say..."You are NOT the father!"??
Some people are just not that smart.

* Teen Mom on MTV...does it glorify teen pregnancy? Do you watch it? Don't lie--you do, don't you?
I really haven't watched it. I love bad reality tv and I'm afraid I'd get sucked into that mess.

* Pajama jeans--rockin or ridic?
They do look comfy but ridic.

* Travel back in time--tell us about the teenage you!
I was a super shy girl in high school. Painfully so. I was a bit of a jock too. I was a gymnast, soccer player, and track team member. I was also a nerd. I always did my homework without prompting. I wish I could tell teenage self to relax more and not care so much about what other people think.

Click the Saturday 6 button to join in with Boobies, Babies & A Blog and The Zombie Housewife.

One Day At a Time

It is only week 2. I already feel like I've messed up. I let the tracking slide a little a couple of days. I didn't go crazy but I find if I'm not super strict I gain. Even with my thyroid medications, my metabolism is slug-like. It is super frustrating. I just need to stick with it each day. If I screw up, I just need to start over right then. No more I've stopped tracking calories, so I might as well go crazy and cake. Thankfully I didn't do that this week. I'm trying to take it one day at a time.

Here's what I did for workouts this week:

Friday= elliptical trainer 50 minutes
Saturday= Rest
Sunday= Jog/walk 4.25 miles in 45 minutes
Monday= Rest
Tuesday= Jog 15 minutes, 30 minute weight training/cardio circuit, and jog 10 minutes
Wednesday= Shovel snow for 1 hour and 40 minutes. That was a great workout since we got 27 inches.
Thursday= Jog 10 minutes, 30 minute weight training/cardio circuit, Shovel 15 minutes (I was trying to move a little more snow so we can see out into the road)

I think I did pretty well with the working out. I continue to go to the gym. I hate working out late at night because it messes with my sleep but I need to do it then or it simply won't happen.

I gained 1/2lb this week. I'm still down 4 1/2 lbs. It is sad that I feel like I'm getting stronger but if the number on the scale isn't what I want it to be that I get super bummed. I'm trying to think about the positives. It is just hard sometimes.

If you wrote a Fitness Friday post, please link up and visit other links for ideas and encouragement.

More Shoveling and My Little Picasso

This week's photo is of me shoveling a path for Maximus. We got 27 inches yesterday. Poor dog had no where to go to relieve himself.

Join the year long challenge of getting yourself in the photo at Diary of a Church Lady. You won't regret it. This is 43/52 for me.

One of the things I love the most about motherhood is getting to see my kids learn new things. Over the last year, Caitlin has really loved drawing and painting. I love seeing how much she has improved and how much she enjoys it.

Go to Simply Modern Mom to share photos of what motherhood is like each week.

You Want Me to Go Out There?

We have 18 inches so far. They are expecting it to snow for a couple more hours. I'm going to need to shovel a path for poor Maximus.

Check out more wordless at 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, A Beautiful Mess and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos.

The Batman and Catwoman Photo Explained

So Dave and I are continuing with our weekly date nights. It is still hard to come up with new and cheap date ideas when you are stuck at home. I was looking at photos we had taken at a friends' wedding in a photo booth and inspiration struck. So we gather props (mostly the kids' stuff) and I set the camera and timer up. We had a blast. I'm glad that Dave likes being goofy with me.

Being goofy with my husband makes me happy. Be sure to go Leigh vs Laundry to see more photos that are bound to make you happy.

This is date 40 out of 52 for us. Go to Simply Modern Mom to join in on the fun. Simply Mom is no longer posting weekly dates but I still want to finish the project.

Peeping Tammy

My 3 year old, Davey, takes swim lessons once a week. After the lessons, we go to the women's locker room so I can change him. Last week, there was a new 3 year girl in the class and locker room. As I am changing Davey, the little girl is craning her neck to look at Davey's nude body. The mom freaks out. She literally covers the girl's eyes with her hand. She also has built a towel fort around her daughter. The more she tries to stop her daughter from seeing Davey the more the little girl tries to see him. The mom says, "We are not suppose to show our bodies to others. That is naughty."

Now it is not like Davey was running around naked in the locker room. Although he has been known to do that too. I just thought she made such a big deal out of the naked 3 year olds that her daughter is probably going to have some issues with nudity/her body later on. They are 3 years old for goodness sake.

What do you think? Did that mom over react? Did I under-react? Is it really harmful for 3 year olds to see the opposite sex naked? I don't think it is but want to hear your opinions too.

21 Days To Form A Habit?

If you ask Google how long it takes to form a habit, you get numbers between 21-28 days. If that is the case, I only have between 14-21 more days to go. This week went well. Really well.

Here's what I did for workouts this week:

Friday= jog/walk15 minutes and 30 minute weight training/cardio (step) circuit
Saturday= Rest
Sunday= Jog/walk 4.1 miles in 48 minutes
Monday= Elliptical trainer 55 minutes
Tuesday= Jog 10 minutes, 30 minute weight training/cardio circuit, and jog 10 minutes
Wednesday= Rest
Thursday= Jog 10 minutes, 30 minute weight training/cardio circuit, and 10 minutes on elliptical trainer

I was happy that I got all my workouts in. Two of the days I went to the gym, I had to go after work. It is a challenge to motivate myself to go late in the day but I feel great when it is done. Here is a trick I have done for years, I change into my workout clothes before I leave work. That way I feel I must go to the gym or feel like a loser if I don't. I also trick myself into working out by telling myself I only have to do half the workout. Once I'm there, I almost always do the whole thing.

I have also tracked my calories all week. Woo hoo! That in itself is a victory for me. I have been really bad at keeping track in recent months. I am tracking my food with Spark People. They also have a great recipe calculator at Spark Recipes. I have been able to enter recipe ingredients and calculate the calories and other nutritional info. It is great to know how good (or bad) meals actually are.

My hard work has paid off. I have lost those 5 lbs. that I gained over the holidays. Woo hoo!

So what tricks to you use to get yourself to workout?

If you wrote a Fitness Friday post, please link up and visit other links for ideas and encouragement.

Batman,Catwoman, and Some Braids

This shot is from our date this week. Come back on Tuesday to read why we are dressed like this.
Join the year long challenge of getting yourself in the photo at Diary of a Church Lady. You won't regret it. This is 42/52 for me.

This photo works for the Shoot Me Project and a new meme, Glimpse into Motherhood by Simply Modern Mom. Glimpse into Motherhood is to share photos of what motherhood is like each week. Caitlin requested that we both wear braids. So we both got braided.

Cool Dog

Maximus will let you do almost anything for a treat.

Be sure to head over to see what all the other cool kids are wearing at Feet Off the Table. Check out more wordless at 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, A Beautiful Mess and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos.

Our New Year Celebration

We had a pretty laid back date on New Year's Eve. We watched Up with the kids. Talk about a sad movie. The first ten minutes or so I just wanted to bawl. Luckily the kids don't pick up on the sadness. We took some goofy pics with the kids. Then put the kids to bed. Dave and I watched one of my favorite movies Good Will Hunting while drinking pineapple drinks. We watched the ball drop and midnight, kissed, and then went to bed. Sometimes a simple New Year celebration is the best.

Being goofy with my family makes me happy. Be sure to go Leigh vs Laundry to see more photos that are bound to make you happy.

This is date 39 out of 52 for us. Go to Simply Modern Mom to join in on the fun. Simply Mom is no longer posting weekly dates but I still want to finish the project.

Pineapple Bowling

I recently won a $25 coupon for Del Monte fresh fruit from Carma Sez. I hoped to use the coupon for some fruit cups as well as fresh fruits. Alas the grocery store said I could only use it on fresh fruit and pineapples are the only fresh Del Monte fruit they sell. So I got 9 pineapples. What does one do with 9 pineapples?

Pose with them.

Bowl with them.

Give them to all your Christmas guests.

And turn the rest into drinks on New Years Eve. Yum!

Memories, Dreams and Reflections of 2010

I'm participating in Memories, Dreams, and Reflections today. It is a good look back on 2010. Be sure to check out Ramblings and Photos for more Memories, Dreams, and Reflections.

1. Me! - My hubby, Dave, took this shot of me. As usual, I have my camera in my hand.
   

2. I Love You - I had to use our Christmas card shot since I actually got everyone in the photo.3. Still Laughing... - Davey wanted to be a superhero. He decided that wearing his sister's witches costume, red cape, and 3D glasses was the way to go.4. Winter Wonderland - During the first blizzard, the snow blew into drifts. I like that the snow looks like sand dunes.
5. Birthday - My husband's birthday cupcake.
6. Friends - Davey and Maximus love hanging out together. They are the bestest of friends.
7. I Was Inspired... by this sky and a shot of a tree from Ashley's blog.
8. Spring Fever - Our annual photo of the kids in the daffodils.
9. Travel or Vacation - Some photos from our very wet trip to Boston.


10. Summer Days - a picture that reflects Summer.
11. A Day In My Life- We like to dance in our house.
12. All Smiles - Miss Captain Underpants makes me smile.
13. Autumn Harvest - Apple picking.
14. Family -Our family loves the Patriots.
15. Celebrate! - 4th of July
16. Let's Do It Again... -I want to make more sandcastles.
17. I Miss You - Not Davey of course, but I miss fresh tomatoes!
18. Beautiful - Beautiful winter sky.
19. Dress Up -Fun with toilet paper.
20. Macro - share your favorite macro image.21. Holidays -Caitlin insisted on sleeping in her "nightcap" all December.
22. My Favorite - I love this photo of Davey watching the parade at Sesame Place and Dave watching him.
23. Don't Ever Change - I love Davey's mischievous little smile.
24. Just Because...So There! - share any picture(s) that you really want to share, but doesn't fit in any other category.

My little Pig Pen

Shake baby shake!

My husband and son holding hands.

25. Hopes and Dreams - My hopes for 2011 are simple. I just want to have lots of goofy fun with my family.