SO.....

this is a post I have been avoiding for like 6 months.  Back in June I put up my 27 before 28 list.  Number 16 is lose 50 pounds.  At the time I thought that this would be so so easy.  It was pretty much only 1 lb per week.  Well fast forward til today and I have lost 4 ounces.  That means that now I have to lose at least 2 lbs per week.  Not as easy as 1 pound per week but still so very do-able.  As long as there is no more procrastinating!  Or I will have to lose 4 lbs per week then 8 lbs per week etc.  Not my cup of tea.  I am sort of thinking that I am crazy for starting at the beginning of December but no better time than the present, eh?    

I am not totally positive how I am going to start losing weight yet.  This week I am going to focus on portion control and getting all the water in that I am suppose to drink.  I am also going to try a work out that was in this months Women's Health for exercise.  It is an interval training type workout that is only supposed to take 20 minutes.  Perfect for the holidays!!!  I am also open for any healthy suggestions and tips!   

One last thing!  How should I blog it?  Would anyone even be interested in updates?  Weekly healthy recipes?  Pictures weekly?  Pounds lost per week?  Let me know what you all think.  I need all the help and support I can get.

Here is a current picture of myself for your viewing pleasure!

I am excited to start on my journey to a healthier weight! YAY!!

Link A Day

This print is truly truly true!

This tutorial is perfect for the holiday parties coming up!  I should start practicing.

Ask my wonderful husband and he will tell you I am a Pride and Pregudice freak.  I love to watch the BBC almost 6 hour version of the movie and I adore the book.  So this print is right up my alley.  Truth be known he loves it too!  He has even suggested that we watch it before.  OH mega swoon!!

Unicorns make me smile.  Ones like this one make me giggle out loud!

How about this necklace to make a sweet Christmas wish?!  Oh how I love it!

OMG I need to make these for the kids!  My heart skipped a beat when I first saw them!

How great would these be to make as gifts?!  I think everyone I know will be getting one this year.

Sunday Songs

I think for the next four or five Sunday Songs I will share some of my favorite Christmas songs.  This one is my all time favorite!  Can it get any better than Bing Crosby?

Fill In The Blank

1.   Waking up at the break of dawn to go shopping is my idea of     a living hell!  I went last night/this morning for the first time and will never go again!  I didn't buy a single thing because I was so stressed out   .

2.   If I were to go shopping today I would be on the hunt for   some real fabulous shoes or boots.  The kids are pretty much done for Christmas.  Which makes me so happy!  Way less stress for sure      .

3.  The best thing I ate yesterday was    laffy taffy pie!  So great and I had necer tried it before.  I also loved the smoked turkey that my fabulous sister and her great husband provided for our feast.  They also happened to provide the laffy taffy pie!    .

4. Something I've been learning lately is    patience.  That has never been my strong point.  I am more of a get pissed quick and often.  GUess what peeps?  That doesn't work!   .

5.  I cannot start my day without    sweet cuddles and kisses in my bed from my kiddos.  OH they warm my heart! .

6.  My nighttime attire consists of    not much. As long as it is tight fitting I can wear it.  I feel like loose clothing wraps around me and constricts.  That is no good for some one with a slight touch of claustrophobia and rolls during the night  .

7.  I am looking forward to    starting our advents with the kids!  We do an activity everyday with the kids during the month of December.  YAY!!  .

linking and image taken from here

Happy Thanksgiving Peeps!

Happy Thanksgiving! 

I hope you are able to enjoy a day filled with great food and great company!   

  

Leopard is a neutral dahling!

I think I want to add some leopard to my wardrobe.  Which is crazy go nuts because my whole life I thought that leopard was something tacky that little old ladies wore.  Plus if I am being totally honest the fact that I am slightly heavy put me off too.  The idea that I would actually be looking like a big old chunky cheetah was not something I was remotely willing to do!!  Body image issues much?!  ANy ways....I was totally wrong!  Now I want!  I want!  I need to start out small so I was thinking shoes maybe?  After all I believe it was Dianne Von Furstenburg that said leopard should be used as a neutral!

jeffrey campbell

These shoes slay me!  They would also slay my pocket book so I will be putting my pennies away for them.  A goal!!  Every one needs a goal!

Cool turkey!

So this is super awesome!  And I am totally making it for this years Day O'Thanks.  The mister and I make a mean batch of stove top popcorn!  Perfect for the snack table. 

Full tutorial and more amazing pictures here

I am off to make hand- print turkeys.  w00t w00t!!

Sunday Songs

Love Feist and I love this song!

And just for fun- 

Link A Day

I really love fruit butters.  And I really love pumpkin so the two should naturally come together.  I found this easy recipe!  I am hoping it tastes as good as it looks.

   These will be a great thing to have around this holiday season to balance all the naughty foods I will be eating.  They aren't exactly healthy but they are the lesser of two evils!

And in direct response to that previous comment.  This post is a great pep talk to stay fit and healthy.  I have been needing a little inspiration in this respect.

This little print may be finding a new home on my wall!  It is perfect for me and the mister.

This conversation my husband had with my son is so funny!  Not too mention that I had pretty much the same one with him as well.

This bow tie is so darling and would be a perfect way to finish off any outfit!  Plus the price is not too shabby!

Everything from A Beautiful Mess is wonderful!  This 10 ways to make a garland post is perfect right now.  I am thinking homemade pom pom garland for our Christmas tree!  Which will be going up in T minus 6 days!

ONE extra little link- Paula Deen+pumpkin= perfection!  

Fill In The Blank Friday

1.   A nervous habit I have is     well I am not sure if it is a habit but I get tongue tied.  Super bad!  It is almost like I have peanut butter in my mouth   .

2.   Something that makes me sad is    funerals.  No duh right?  I went to one this week and it was difficult and sad      .

3.  Today I am thankful for    great girlfriends that are willing to go to Breaking Dawn part 1 with me tonight at midnight!  Also my sweet husband and his willingness to work so hard for my family.  Plus the little babies and the hilarious and sweet things they say    .

4. My favorite room in my house is    my bedroom!  I love shutting the door and shutting out everything and having conversations with my husband about wishes and dreams and then not talking ;)!   .

5.  I can't stand    inconsiderate shoppers!  Is it seriously so hard to not make a pig of yourself in a fitting room?  Really?    .

6.  If I had an extra $100 to spend on whatever I wanted today I would    a huge space ship toy at Tutoring Toy for the kids.  It is awesome!  It is made of wood and has a million details .

7.  The last person I hung out with was    my kids before they went to bed.  That is a fun/frustrating time.  Hyper active much?!  .

linking and image taken from here

Breaking Dawn? Yes please!

umm kay.... I am so flipping excited!  And yes I am going to the midnight showing and I will be screaming just like the littlt tweens and teens that will be there.

The Littlest Mammoth

transport

goody hoo

Are those prints not totally delightful?  They are available on The Littlest Mammoth along with many others.  However there is a 50 dollar credit up for a giveaway here on The Paper Mama- which happens to be a little bit of delight!  So pop on over and enter to win this great prize.   And check out her blog for reals!

Inspiration Monday

The picture below of Kelly Ripa was the inspiration for Two Birds inspiration monday!  

This is my take!

Sadly I don't have a single pair of total kick ass jeans but my basic skinnies do just fine!  Hop on over and link up your version and to check out the other great ladies linked!

Old Thankful Tom

I am trying really hard to not skip Thanksgiving and head straight into Christmas.  That is hard!!  It seems like the time just flies by after we get Halloween past us.  Then a few short weeks later it is Christmas and I find myself saying "Thanksgiving who?".  Well not this year!  I have a few activities I want to to do with the kids and I pledge to get them done!  The first one is a fantastic idea from Michael at life is all about things and stuff.  His family does a turkey every year and his beautiful feathers are filled with things that his family is thankful for.  I really loved this idea when I saw it here on his blog.  I feel like we all need to be reminded that we are truly blessed.

So old Tom is up and he already has some feathers.  Some are funny and some are serious and I love it already!

I was able to find that turkey on a site that has free coloring pages and I made his feathers out of construction paper.  Not as fancy as Michaels but it gets the job done!!  I will be sure to post some pictures before Thanksgiving and show our progress.

Sunday Songs

This is a very sweet song!  I heard about Simon Pereira from my husband.  So so worth a listen! 

Fill In The Blank Friday

1.   My favorite new blog of the moment is     IROCKSOWHAT   .

2.   Something I am thankful for is   a wonderful husband that is taking such great care of our family.  He works so hard for us!      .

3.  Something that made me laugh this week was    I can't remember!  That is sad but I promise you that I did laugh.  A whole lot!   .

4. An item that is currently on my wish list is     a plastic camera or a razor scooter   .

5.  I am excited about    the holidays!  So many plans and so much fun .

6.  If I were a color I would be     a jewel toned fuchsia!  It is bright but not overwhelming .

7.  My favorite way to spend a chilly fall day is by    cuddling under the blankets watching a movie marathon.  Some treats must be involved too!  .

linking and image taken from here

Link a Day

I think that this would be so delightful to have in my hair this Christmas season!  A perfect little topper!

Loving this!  3 easy fun ways to tie a scarf in your hair.  The post is in French but her pictures are so great that it is easy to figure out how she ties the scarves.  She actually uses the pictures as the instruction.  And while you are there stay and check things out because it is a delightful blog!

I made these this week and they are already gone!  I want to experiment with different candies and maybe even some nuts.

I heart bake-lite!  This necklace is pretty grand!

I think I might try and tackle this.  It is chic without being stuffy!

Danielle from Thompson Family-Life is doing 55 days of vintage Christmas!  This particular post made me heart skip a beat!  Oh those lights.  I would love to find something like that while thrifting.

This tutorial is exactly what I have been looking for!  I should have known Martha Stewart's talented peeps would have done one!  Monster mittens!!

Easy Chimichangas

OH chimis- how you speak to me!  How can you not like a chimichanga?  Fried and meaty?  Yumm-o!  On to this insanely easy and pretty fast recipe that my family has been using for years!

2 lbs ground meat 

2  4oz cans green chiles

1 large onion chopped

10 tortillas

Enough oil for about 2 inches in pan

10 toothpicks

Items for topping

  

In large skillet cook up chopped onions and ground meat.  After meat is cooked thoroughly add both cans green chiles stir up well and set aside.  Heat up oil on large pan/pot.  Put about 1/2 cup of meat mixture in middle of tortillas and wrap like a burrito.  Wrap up tight otherwise you may have splatters from the juices  leaking into the oil.  Secure with toothpick (as shown above!)  Fry chimis in batches of about three until crisped up as much or as little as you like.  Remove from oil and top as you see fit!

* I use a large cast iron pot to fry them.  It heats a little more even than a regular pan of pot.

* They are wonderful topped with any traditional taco toppings! 

*I used gordita sized tortillas this time but since that is not something I normally see at the store we usually use burrito size. 

Fun in the Leaves

Yay for Autumn!  We raked up the leaves and this kids of course jumped in them!  On a total random side note- I found out that I burned about 400 calories raking said leaves.  So I pretty much need to be constantly raking leaves the rest of my life to compensate for the food I eat!  Any way..... back to the cute kids!  They built castles and piles and all sorts of stuff.  It was so fun to watch them!!  Such a great fall day.  Perfectly chilly and beautiful sunshine.

Lola has an covered oreo face!  He he!!

Aren't they doll babies?  I think so!

Sunday Songs

I really can't believe that I have never done a Gwen Stefani song for Sunday songs.  I am a huge fan of her!  She is gorgeous and super talented!

Link A Day

I want to make something along these lines for the kids for Christmas!  

Chicken Sesame Noodles?  Um yes please!!

This tutorial for Bokeh photos is awesome!  And for those of us that have a point and shoot camera- like myself- here is a tutorial for that too!

Super sweet Cameo necklace.  I L.O.V.E cameos period. 

I don't think that the sweet jessie blog has been updated since last year but start on Day 12 of her 12 days of Christmas and work your way back.  Totally delightful! 

OKay second recipe for the week and it happens to come from Framed Cooks again!  Mexican Meatball soup is making its way onto my menu this week! 

How smart is making a reusable swiffer sweeper?!  Love it!  Saves the earth and moolah!!

Fill in the Blank

1.   My favorite thing about this week was/is     taking my kids trick or treating.  It was so much fun!  I am already excited for next year   .

2.   Colder weather makes me   happy!  I am not a hot weather person.  I prefer a chill in the air and I love a great thin sweater- so I don't get too hot      .

3.  Three things that make me terribly happy as of late are    Lola's little pig snort that she does, Nicco hugging on Lola when she gets hurt and Nick's big arms courtesy of his new job at UPS   .

4. If I could only wear one kind of shoe for the rest of my life, I'd choose    black Toms probably.  They are comfortable and whether you can wear them with anything or not it doesn't matter because I do!   .

5.  My personality type is    I don't even know.  My mom has said that I am a sanguine/choleric.  Quite a mix!   .

6.  I have a serious problem resisting     any cravings at all!  Oh and kids clothes.  I love buying the littles clothes and dressing them up.  I dress Lola in a lot of things that I don't have the guts myself to wear.  My little dress up dolls.  It will be sad day when they start having an opinion! HAHA!  .

7.  My favorite color to wear is    black! Black BLACK!  I do like to mix in some super bright colors periodically to throw people off  .

linking and image taken from here

This was Halloween!

Yay Halloween!!  I loved halloween this year.  The kiddos loved it as well!  They chose their costumes for the first time this year and I really tried not to influence them.  No matter how bad I wanted too!!  It was also the first year that we went trick or treating in our neighborhood.  Crazy fun! We also went to a mall which I am now thinking was over-kill.

Yay Bumble Bee!! I have one obsessed little boy.  He adores Bumble Bee.  Like to the point where he sleeps with his Bumble Bee transformer!

Sweet cupcake!  Lola loved this costume so much that she hugged it when she saw it.  

Mall trick or treating. In the light and safe but kind of lame!! 

 

This is my favorite picture of the whole night.  Bumble Bee blur!  He was so excited to get to the next house.  

We went out with some of their cousins.  The older kids were super excited about helping Nicco and Lola.  It was so great because Nick had to work.  It is like herding cats sometimes with those two.  You need help for sure!

After trick or treating we headed over to a friends for a party.  I wish I had gotten more pictures.  They had probably 15+ pumpkins that took two days to carve!  And they looked like it!

This little zombie guy in their yard scared many a trick or treater.  It was super hilarious!

My friend Dani and her husband Mark went all out for their decorations!  She hand made all these bottles.  It was an amazing spread.