me + sweets

One big thing on my {25} list was to lose 20 pounds. I picked 20 because I’m pretty sure that was post baby/married weight but regardless of the number I am sick of being heavy. It’s funny because in my mind I thought after Moses was born I could shrink back down but instead my body settled into a new form of itself and then slowly grew larger and larger. I blame those dang $2 incredibly delicious and buttery and savory and glorious greasy state office cafeteria breakfasts and basically sitting on my butt all day at work. I also shouldn’t belittle the fact that I am in love with food. I would eat because I was bored or it was an office treat that day or I was having a bad day or I was having a good day or I was emotional or I was ___ (fill in the blank). 

It also doesn’t help that I am head over heels addicted to sugar. People laugh and say oh me too….but I don’t think on the level I am. I crave, sneak, savor, and indulge in sweets every chance I get. I whine and cry until I get some and since I’m an adult and can do whatever I want that means I’m eating sugar every day. 

Welp, enough is enough.

Seriously, enough has to be enough.

I joined the gym mid 2011 and lost about 5 pounds only to see it creep back on then off again.

So enough is enough.

I…..needed more.

I…..

Joined Weight Watchers.

Why Weight Watchers? Because I can still eat whatever I want, in moderation. Because I can still cook a meal for my family. Because the choices are limitless. Because it works.

I really didn’t want to share on here until I was 10 pounds lighter and running miles daily and yadda yadda BUT I need the accountability. That’s another reason for Weight Watchers, those weekly motivational meetings and weigh ins. Since this has become such a big part of my daily life it only felt right to share my struggles and victories. Get ready for a bumpy but rewarding ride!

Hi, my name is Caroline; I’m addictive to food and ready to get help.

Wordless Wednesday {fulfilled}

Fulfilled. 

twentyfive {25}

Each item has its own special reasoning; each one knocking down a wall I’ve built up for numerous reasons. Like I mentioned yesterday I get so bogged down with staying busy so this year, I’m making it happen. I’ve carefully selected 25 things (in no particular order) that will be both challenging and rewarding and with a 1 year deadline I’m determined to make it happen. January 27^th 2013 is my deadline. This blog is my accountability. Here is the challenge.

1.      Print out wedding photos for an old fashion album
2.      See two movies in the theater in one day
3.      Lose 20 pounds
4.      Start and finish five different sewing projects
5.      Take family photos
6.      Write a friend a letter at least once a month (12)
7.      Stick to a cash budget for an entire month
8.      Take a 7 day fast from all forms of social media
9.      Bake something new and challenging each month (12)
10.  Fill most frames in the house with fresh pictures
11.  Join a women’s bible study
12.  Entertain friends/ family at least once a month at our house (12)
13.  Run a 5k (I’m too scared to say 10k)
14.  Wear a bikini in public
15.  Compile a memory verse book for Moses
16.  Backup all our photos on an external hard drive
17.  Vacation somewhere I’ve never been
18.  Volunteer long-term at church
19.  Eliminate meat from my diet for 1 month
20.  Brush up on my French ( a class, a workbook, a tutor, ect)
21.  Take a 7 day fast from TV
22.  Jump off the high dive at Wakulla Springs
23.  Spend time with my Grandma outside of the holidays
24.  Color some part of my hair a non-natural color (I’m thinking purple)
25.  Get pregnant

Super Mom.

Here I am again; head barely above water. My legs are tired from kicking to keep me afloat and my arms are filled with groceries, pee soaked Lightning McQueen jammies, and a smart phone….I’m drowning. It’s not a bad place to be, honestly, just very overwhelming. How can you possibly do it all?

Plan/ prep each meal to make sure it’s healthy?

Spend less than $75 each week at Publix?

Keep our family on a budget in general?

Have a decent quiet time?

Read the Harry Potter series?

Find time to exercise?

Spend time with family?

Spend time with girlfriends?

Find time to decorate?

Find time to keep my house clean?

All the above I want to do. Half the above I actually need to do. And a mix between the two is what I actually do. Even though I was up at 6:30am to get in my gym time and spent my lunch break strolling the isle of the grocery store I still won’t have enough time today. Does my house always suffer? Of course. Does my quiet time get cut short from my sleepy eyes getting too sleepy? Obviously. See the problem? A girlfriend shared this wonderful article with me the other day about Super Mom (or design, food, ect) bloggers and how they don’t actually do it all. The blogger was very honest about her normal state of life compared to the one she blogs about; it’s true, who likes to show off the messy part of their life?

My issue is I don’t want to stop writing but at the same time I don’t want to spend half my time apologizing for my lack of life documentation. I want this to be my lifestyle outlet; crappy meals, wonderful moments, woe is me I’m a working mom, and everything in between.

Here I am…one big mess. Let’s just get this out of the way and say I’m busy being busy from now until forever.

{glorious} birthday.

The only reason I’m sharing about my birthday before Moses’ is that after reviewing the 100’s of photos my sister took of the birthday party I still had over 50 I wanted to share. And uploading 50 photos takes a heck of a lot of time. And that is not something I have a lot of. I promise to narrow it down and I might even get crazy and post a FB album because there are just too many worth sharing. But alas, my special day. Or shall I say days.

Overwhelming love. Thanks to Davy, Moses, and my Mom I feel loved every single day of my life; this particular week it’s been extra special. Starting last Monday I have been showered with special treats, small gifts, sweet cards, more treats, celebrations, and love. By Friday I felt like my birthday had already been celebrated and in reality it had just begun kicking off with a delicious lunch with my office family. 

I cannot say enough about how glorious my night out with my very favorite girlfriends was. We all piled into one car and took the 30 mile trip to Thomasville to eat at my most favorite restaurant, Jonah’s. It’s a small, quaint little place off the main street that is Christian owned and serves the best food. I can proudly say I’ve never had a bad experience when going there and this was no exception. To add to the wonderful food was my wonderful girlfriends; whom each I treasure in their own special way and made the night unforgettable. 

The next day the boys and I woke up early and decided to drive to the Jr. Museum for family time. The trip started off right with perfect Starbucks orders and a happy little boy. The weather was perfect, there was only a handful of people there, and we had a blast. We took our time exploring the animals, old farm houses, and the beautiful natural scenery in north Florida. Am I making you sick yet with how wonderful this weekend was? I promise I’m not trying to…it really was just that wonderful!

The afternoon we played volleyball at my mom’s followed by a home cooked meal of all my favorites; steak, scallops, shrimp, harvest salad, baked potatoes, and cake. Oh my gosh can a person really eat all this? Yes. It also felts great being the birthday girl and just laying around not lifting a finger; truly enjoying my special day(s).

 

All the gifts and activities were great but it would not have been the same without all the wonderful Birthday wishes and friends and family giving up their time to celebrate me. Overwhelming love. 

Noms.

Oscar Noms are out! Here are your best picture nominees:

"The Artist" – May be the hardest one for me to sit through; no desire to see.
"The Descendants" – I’ve wanted to see this since watching the first preview; it seems simple (much like The Kids are Alright which I loved) but a good heart filled plot line.
"Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close" – I read about 70% of this book so I am extremely curious to see how it plays out on the big screen. The book was very confusing to me half because of Foer's writing style but also because it jumps around so much to different time periods and story lines. It will be a tear jerker but I’m ready for it!
"Hugo" – I don’t see an animated movie winning. 
"Midnight in Paris" – We almost rented this last weekend so I’m looking forward to seeing it. Woody Allen isn’t me hero or anything but I’m sure it will be worth seeing… as long as it’s nothing like One Day.
"The Help" – Read the book, loved the book. Saw the movie, liked the movie. My fault for reading before seeing (it’s an either/or for me; you can’t love them both) but they did a great job on the southern characters. I don’t see it winning.
"Moneyball" – Just watched this past weekend. It was good, but not great. Good acting, good story line (especially seeing that it’s based off a true story), but nothing too climactic happened making it a slower movie.
"War Horse" – Ok forget The Artist, THIS will be the one that kills me. I have zero desire to see this….zero.
"The Tree of Life" – Will only see this because it’s on Best Picture list. It may surprise me and I’m hoping it does. 

I’m really hoping Extremely Loud or The Descendants blows me away because I think they are big contenders for the award; also because I really want to see them. The Descendants took the Golden Globes which is generally a good indicator but we shall see!

I have just over 30 days to see 7 movies which means I need to spend a couple week nights renting and a couple week nights dragging something to the theater with me. 

I also need to find some friends who will have an Oscar’s viewing party with me. Fancy hair, wine, sweet treats, and a big TV. Any takers?

On your birth date.

Prepare yourself for photo vomit this week. Since this little guy lights up my life we shall start with his birthday. 
 

Tradition around here is going to dinner with family on your birth date. Instead of forcing Moses to sit still at a nicer restaurant we took him to his most favorite place to eat, Chick Fil A! It was perfect; the kids played, we ate chicken, we opened presents, and we ate cake! So simple and enjoyable that I may just throw a birthday party there next year! 

Unfortunately this was the night that Moses started his multi-day stomach bug so the poor guy didn’t even want to eat a piece a cake. When my garbage disposal child doesn’t want to eat a huge slice of cake we knew something was wrong! 

 And this is....The Cake. Davy decided earlier in the week that he HAD to make him a cake! He did all the planning, purchasing, baking, and decorating. I giggled when I first saw the beauty but seeing the proud look on Davy's face made this messy thing into a wonderful memory!