Happy Halloween!!

I have pretty much decided I am scrapping this week as far as eating right because I am seriously failing...today really needs to be my last "free day" because I have GOT to get back on target to my 90 day goals. I have purchased Halloween Candy twice already and yet I hope to have enough for the Trick-or-Treaters tonight...seriously...it it just my house?

After enjoying many a "Treat" yesterday, Parker decided to try out his skills at "Tricking"...
















It was SUPER CUTE the first couple times....the next 23 started to make me crazy..


Last night we decided to take on the Pumpkins...we really do have to wait until last minute here in AZ cause it's still so warm during they day you either need to put them in the fridge during the day or you get like 27 hours max before it wilts and rots. Learned that one the hard way the first year I was here...nothing like slaving for hours over carefully created masterpieces to have them end up looking like aging zombies...but I guess those are in now....

Totally distracting you from the fact I don't have any great meal suggestions today cause I ate Pizza...and Doritos....MEH! Tomorrow is again a new day....sounding familiar?? Yeah, it's been that kind of week!

How long do you wait to buy Halloween Candy so that you actually have some to hand out?

No need for a costume this year..

I think I have decided that I have a case of "Supermom-itus" meaning not only am I trying to take on too much, but also with the expectation of pulling each task and responsibility off at a level nothing short of perfection...hmmm- totally possible, right?




 







Like I can't be the only Mom stressing that we only have two Halloween shirts for the dogs so we have to stuff the pup in a Santa suit...









Pretty bad when even the dog is looking at you like you are losing it...

I did manage to throw some frozen chicken breasts in the crock pot this morning with 2 small cans of enchilada sauce- which I shredded once they were cooked through. I sliced up some zucchini for the bottom of the bowls, topped with the chicken enchilada mix- then topped that with shredded lettuce, chopped tomato's, avocado, and sliced olives. It's easier to eat if you cut up the zucchini strips after you pour the mixture on top- here's the progression pic :) This dish is REALLY filling, and was yummy!

How do you keep yourself from going nuts?

Under Construction....

Having a "day" but didn't want to miss a post for those that are following me on my journey toward "becoming"....at this point I am really at a loss as to what that is or even a vague idea of what it looks like...this pretty much sums it up- hopefully in a better spot tomorrow....

I appreciate your patience :/

The Power of Pumpkin

So I am two-for-two again on days and exercising...I'm hoping to be batting a hundred by Halloween.  I know that's only three days away, but that would be a new record for me- BRING IT!

Seriously spent the whole day trying to piece together my daughter's costume for the season, which needs to be "EPIC" every year- meaning it needs to cost way more money than it's worth AND ride the line of what's appropriate and what's not :/ At least this year she's moved away from the hyped up half naked, advertised costumes that look like lingerie...meaning we put together out own cause everything in her size is "sexy"-(insert character here) witch, devil, zombie....I think the porn industry took over when we weren't paying attention. It's a lose/lose though cause even putting together something yourself still costs you $50...

Tonight we are taking on the pumpkin carving project- here are the carefully selected canvases:

 

 

 

 

I could only pass so many Starbucks during the day before I finally broke down to the power of the Pumpkin Spice (skinny) latte. Not too confident it will help with my "skinny" goals but I earned that sucker!





 I think I have decided my favorite thing about fall is "pumpkin spice" anything...what's yours?

Peach Perfection

I have discovered my new best thing......

A-MAZING! This is a Peach AM Bar that has been microwaved for 30 seconds and then let cool (most important step if you actually want to taste anything for the next 48 hours)

Peach Cookie!! YUMMERS!









HYDRATE PEOPLE!

Super busy day, but I did manage to muster up the energy for a 9pm run- was pretty proud of myself and it felt pretty good to actually get moving again.





From now till my 90 days I really want to focus on working more- well, more like ANY exercise into each day- it's time to kick it up a notch!

How do you work more activity into your busy schedule?

Foul Feta Friday

Parky thought he would help me with my post this morning- I am thinking we BOTH look tired...this week has been a rough one!

- need-SPARK-stat!



Broke out the Vanilla MRS and blended with some ice cubes and blackberries that were on sale out Sprouts this week for $.88, I think Parky sucked down about half before I got any...guess that's one way to lose weight quicker :)

Was feeling "breakfast" for lunch would be a good idea and it was until I decided to break the rules and put some Feta on them that's been staring me in face every time I open the fridge since I started the 24DC. BAD IDEA.....even though I checked the date I am pretty sure this Feta already went south for the winter (>.<)

Ended up picking it back off/eating around it...another great way to lose weight....MEH!

How DO you tell stinky cheeses have gone bad??

24 Day Challenge for Teens Results

The 24DC for Teens is a modified version of the program for adults, so it ensures they have the correct nutrition needed for bodies that are still growing but also makes sure they are consistently burning fat effectively. Lyss was stoked with her results as this is the lowest weight she's been as a teen!

Weight: (6 lbs)

R Arm: --

Abdomen: (4")

Chest: (1/2")

Waist: (1 1/2")

Hips: 39 --

R Thigh: (1)

R Calf: --

Total after 24 Days: 6lbs and 7" lost!

Admonition of guilt...

Okay so today is actually the day BEFORE I am supposed to end lean in phase 4 and since my daughter Alyssa is done today I figured I will just end this phase as well so our free days will line up again going forward. AND I know I have not been doing the greatest the last 4 days so I am clearing my conscious now and moving on...

1. Saturday I was feeling celebratory over my 60 Days of focus and evidently lost all focus and drank an entire bottle of wine (over about 6 hours) WHICH more than likely contributed to the fact I was mad at the world. Not to mention did NOT feel so great before the Charity walk...

2. Sunday AFTER the Charity walk I felt I deserved a burger-fries-fried cheese sticks-AND 2 drinks...

3. Tuesday (last night) I had three beers and crap load of Chex mix....

:/

With no further adoo- here are the consequences for my 4th lean in so I can move on:

Weight: 149.6 (-1lb)

R Arm: 12

Abdomen: 32 (1")

Chest: 36

Waist: 30 1/2 (+1/2")- yes, red is BAD

Hips: 39 1/2 (+1/2")

R Thigh: 25 1/2 (-3/4)

R Calf: 15

64 Days, Total of 13.4 lbs lost and 21 inches

 

Insert song from "Annie"-and I'm out...

...the sun'll come out, tomorrow...



ELROY!!!

In the morning, after Parky woke up and I used my Mommy Ninja skills to convince him to go back down for another 30 minutes so I could lay in my bed with the windows open blowing in nice cool desert air, all tucked in still snugly warm and just relax. It was nice, calm, almost trance like where I lay with my eyes closed, completely relaxed, but not asleep- just in peace....

...and it was at that very moment I realized that what would make that very moment PERFECT is if I could push a button and robot would come massage this knot out of my neck that has been growing for months now- AREN'T WE SUPPOSE TO BE THE JETSONS BY NOW!





I seriously need to get serious about hitting the store- luckily there was a leftover chicken breast from grilling the other night, so it became my lunch.

Guess my stomach is shrinking cause above is what I was SUPPOSED to eat (though the chicken may have been a little more) and here is what was left as I was STUFFED and literally couldn't take another bite :)










I am noticing even on my free days, most of the day you are eating on plan out of habit, and seriously- it's EASIER! Then when you are eating "bad" foods you really can't eat that much..WIN/WIN!

In other news...Lyss is on her final day of the challenge today! YAY! So tomorrow I will be updating her results here and on the Teen Challenge page- so excited to see her progress but she has really owned it and makes all her food decisions herself! Learning life skills to be healthy- that's what it's all about friends!

If we were the Jetson's already, what gadget would you own?

Virgin Charity Walker

Today was my first official Charity Walk and I have decided I need to do more of these- it's like a festival and exercise all in one- <3 it! Parky, one of my BFF's Kim and I walked with a few people from work- we had a sign and everything, pretty cool!

In pure female form we decided to make sure and use the facilities prior to the walk- a nice lady took Parker and my pic while we waited for Kim.


Here's a tip: use the porta pottys as EARLY as possible for the best experience....I got lucky, Kim did not :/

They had lots of snacks and free stuff for all the participants; Starbucks, cards, fruit, bars, water- there were SO many people there- AND dogs, tons of dogs!

These were the actual Runners and you can tell which ones were legit by position and pose- some of the stretching that went on 10 minutes prior to this was interesting as well- you would have thought it was an Olympic qualifying event or something!













Here's Kim and I post race...she's looking a lot fresher than I am..it got HOT out there in direct sunlight, but the breeze was nice- thank the Lord they have these things late OCT, we would all fry here in AZ!

Can you guess who the walk was sponsored by?....









Love me some free stuff, but not sure how I feel about them handing out a GIGANTOR pill.....

What charity walks have you done? Any tips for us Newbies?

Sucky Saturday

Weird Saturday continued with my kids getting all their chores done before I even woke up, which NEVER happens. I really didn't know what to do with the three hours of nagging I had penciled in, so I cut some bangs....

Pretty good for doing it myself- usually I have Lyss do them cause she's a wiz with that razor/comb/cutter thingy, but I was determined to make it work...this is the best job I've done so far- YAY!










Ran around all day and ended up at Sprouts cause they had $.88 black berries and then realized I really have nothing to cook for dinner. They had super cheap chicken and it beats thawing some out for something so why not?

Hard to read but the marinade is Honey Dijon and was delish, scored the chicken on both sides, marinaded for about an hour and then threw them on the grill. Two minutes, 45 degree turn (for pretty grill marks), then two minutes, then flip- then 2/turn/2- done :) Had these with asparagus, I LOVE asparagus! was starving so I spaced out taking the "after" pic but it was delish!




The day ended with me pissed off at the world and walking around the neighborhood for an hour to cool off (at midnight)...nice- good thing I don't have to get up tomorrow at 5:30 for a charity walk or anything :/ Meh!



What is your all time FAV vegi?



TGI...F?

Yesterday was such a weird Friday, still not sure exactly why. Maybe because I was just so freakin busy I didn't have a chance to enjoy it's Friday-ness :/

Was so proud of myself for sticking through to 60 days Caden was begging for Pizza and I said what the hay, why not? I only had two slices and they were delish but the treat for me really was not having to cook.

Parker missed his second nap so from about 5pm to 8:30 he ran around like a crazed lunatic which really sucks cause usually this is when he runs into the wall, or smacks his head on the table..you can never predict and it's so stressful!

 

Do missed Friday's throw you off too? Now my Saturday is weird!

AdvoCare 60 Day Result Pics

Drumroll please......

That's it today folks- LIKE A BOSS!

 



 

No so much like a baby

Not sure what it is, but I've been craving coffee- like REALLY GOOD coffee at about 9pm. Night before last I gave in and made some espresso with no consequence. Last night..not so lucky, hence I was up until 2am unable to sleep. I'm actually not too bad this morning though- maybe I was getting too much sleep or something...yeah, right!






      I'm not even sure that is ACTUALLY  possible as a Mom, pretty sure you are just filling in the deficit for like...at least 20 years!













Really in dire need of a snack shopping trip, I'm out of cashews and over raw almonds so hopefully I get my butt to the store at some point soon. Dinner last night was bun-less vegi burgers (Boca are my personal favorite). Not 100% sure but I think this would actually qualify as a VEGAN meal- wow! Look at me go :)

Do you make faces with your ketchup too or is it just me?

48 Hours to 60 Days

Countdown to day 60 is closing in fast, 48 hours till new pics and I can't wait to see the side-by-side-by-sides :) I've been working hard and the fact that my family is starting to notice means there is big time change so hopefully my pics show the same thing.

My exercising plan lasted the record three days, going to need to start making that a habit as I am shrinking but the supplements can only do so much to tighten it up and I really don't want saggy...NOT HOT!

Busted out my food network skills last night with what I am calling Enchilada Soup. I threw a package of ground turkey with a large can of green enchilada sauce in the crock pot on low for about 5 hours (the leaner the turkey the best- like Jennie O- it cooks up "dry" so perfect for this recipe).

Then scoop out your portions and set aside while you chop the vegi's so it's not boiling hot when you throw them on top. I know it SORTA looks like dog food, but hang in there with me, it is amaze-balls good!





Next I shredded some iceberg lettuce, chopped up tomatoes with red onion, garlic and fresh lime and then layered about 1/4 of a chopped avocado on top- booyah! This was SUPER delish, the chilled crunchy vegi's with the warm soup- seriously one of the best things I have ever made! Perfect prep for my favorite time of year...soup for dinner season!

 

What's your favorite Soup for Dinner?



Monday no Fun-day

Had a huge case of the Monday's yesterday and still didn't feel that great from the day before so I didn't really feel like having to "cook" dinner. I remembered I had that 2nd dinner I threw in the freezer from my Winco trip....remember this?

 

I just threw the whole frozen chunk into the crock pot around 1pm and cooked on high till about 5:30. I shredded it and left it in there about another 30 minutes. The guys had it on brown rice and us ladies did lettuce wraps topped with shredded carrot- was just as good the second time around:)

I also upgrades sizes of my favorite snack yesterday...I am a sucker cause this jar was NOT on sale and cost me $4.99...BAD to go shopping when you are hungry!

 

What is your guilty impulse buy when you shop hungry?





Free Days have a price to pay...

Yesterday I took a much needed complete and total DAY OFF- of pretty much everything! Paul and I went to the AZ Cardinals vs Bills NFL game and had a blast! No kids, no focusing on what/when to eat- just a complete and total break.









Lunch was awesome, the game was a nail biter- all the way into OT when Paul decided to launch his sunglasses off his head into the Club House Level below...which no one has access too unless you have tickets in the Club House Level- Fun! We ended up having to have the Sheriff's gain access and get them for us after the game...good times! Guess I got my $100 out of those Oakley's cause they survived the landing!







Well I must have really overdid myself on the "Free" part of the day cause by the time we got home I was SUPER sick and my stomach hurt really bad- not a fun way to end the day. I think going forward I will stick to the plan most of the day (like usual) and then add in "free" stuff not an entire free-for-all day- cause my stomach can't handle it!

 

 

How free are you on your FREE DAYS?

Picture worth 53 Days of Focus

Failed at posting again yesterday :/ That makes twice, but I'm going to all them vacation days "D as I think both of them were the day after I finished a lean in phase so hey, I needed a break! This week has been crazy busy even with the older kids at their Dad's- not sure how it always feels that way- but it does!

skinny legs! I missed you SO MUCH!

Here's me and Parky heading out to meet up with K. for Free Day Fiesta! Paul took this pic and as soon as he got the camera my panic went sky high but I figured what the heck, I have been working my tail of lately...maybe it shows? I am SO HAPPY with this pic! I was all- holy crap- look how skinny I'm getting! <3<3<3 IT! Can't wait to see my 60 Day side by side with my before in about a week!


Lyssa, my 15 year old daughter is rocking the Teen Challenge out big time- she sent me a 12 Day pic and WOW she is literally melting! She's still at her Dad's and I know she will want to weight/measure when she gets back tonight but she says her "skinny jeans" are too big and it's "annoying". What a horrible problem to have!

Camera shy or flash a smile? Which are you?

3rd Lean In Results

Good news- it's results day again! No pics until day 60 but here's my results from Day 38 to 52:

Weight: 150.6 (-2lbs)

R Arm: 12

Abdomen: 33 (1 1/2")

Chest: 36

Waist: 30

Hips: 39 (-1 1/4")

R Thigh: 26 (-1/2)

R Calf: 15

52 Days, Total of 12.4 lbs lost and 20 1/4 inches!

Chipped Off

Alright, I'm 3 for 3 on exercising:) This MIGHT be a personal record, so it's kinda a big deal- ideally it will become a habit, so bear with me while I create it. I was extra motivated to run due to some poor planning for dinner last night- we had to run errands and because we were starving decided Mexican sounded good. I had broiled chicken breasts with tomatillo sauce (which is AMAZING) and black beans- I skipped eating all but a bite of the rice and flour tortillas...and cheese. Bad news is I ate a bowl full of tortilla chips while we waited for our food because I was STARVING....hence the motivation to go running at 10:30pm.

Notice they how new my shoes look XD

I actually bought them not long after I had Parky in 2011....In fact with baby in tow I went to 3 different stores and tried on all kinds of shoes (cause I'm super picky) even those toe sock ones (too weird for me) and I remember one sales Lady asked me what kind of running I do....with a straight face!






...Oh, well ACTUALLY I'm trying to put on some weight right now for this movie that I'm in where I play an overweight, post pardum, depressed mom, who's stressed out and at the end of her rope...but AFTER THAT I'm right back at training for the 2016 Olympic Long distance qualifications..

It really wasn't as bad as I remember, but last time I tried running was a few months after I gave birth so I know there was a whole lot of jiggle going on and I HATE that! It was nice and cool out and I only saw one person- the security golf cart guy- which I never know if it's a good thing or a bad thing....good that he's out?? or is he out because he needs to be?? I try to pay attention either way- I'm not letting hoodlums deter my goals here!

My after run treat-<3 these Gingerbread Snack Bars! (still showing available!) They taste just like carrot cake! I need to order more before they are gone for the season :(

Some love to run, some hate it, where do you stand?

YAY for OmegaPlex!

Exercised two days in a row now! Go Me! To be honest I wasn't THAT excited about doing it last night, but knowing I am taking 60 day pics in less than two weeks is pretty motivating. Broke out the Zumba to sweat it out~

This is as far as I've made it with the 6 Zumba DVD's- #2- I actually tried to do the 3rd one a while back and about died, these are no joke folks!

















Used my other marinade score to make Teriyaki Chicken
last night- this one was yummy!











Took two frozen chicken breasts and threw them in the crock pot with about 1/2 C of this marinade and 1/2 C water mixed for about 4 hours on low. Steamed some broccoli and threw the chopped chicken over the broccoli and topped with some of the crock pot sauce- yum-yum!








Noticed something in the shower last night...don't be scared! My hair finally stopped falling out! Ever since I gave birth to Parky my hair keeps falling out in ridiculous amounts- like scary amounts, all time! It's like someone flipped a switch and it's stopped! YAY!

What changes are you noticing on the challenge?

Floor Exercises

Well it's official...I have BEGUN "working out"! YAY ME! For the record this monument occurred on day 47 with my favorite Pilates DVD:

I consider this one my "favorite" as not only does it actually work- BUT it literally starts with "okay so I want you to lay down on your mat..." So basically it's more of a mind battle just to get up and put in the dang DVD than to actually DO-IT! I  tell myself "All I have do is lay down and do what she says!"- it's hard arguing not having the energy to lay down, but of course, I've done it! ...by the looks of my "before" picture- A LOT!

What is your favorite go-to workout DVD?