Weekly Weigh In - Week 43

<a href="http://www.danilykewoah.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="My Little Apricot" src="http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/danilykewoah/weighin.gif" /></a>

How Do I Participate:

1. Write a Blog Post. Somewhere in it you MUST post the 'Weekly Weigh-In' Button and your weight loss or gain. You do not need to post your actual weight, though it may be helpful for you.

2. Link up using the McLinky below (Please link to your actual Weekly Weigh-In post, NOT your main blog page)

3. Visit other blogs on the linky and show your support.

Remember, you don't need to link up on Thursdays. The linky is open for the whole week!

Last Week:

184.9

This Week:
184.3

STARTING WEIGHT: 211.6

LAST WEEK'S WEIGHT:184.9

CURRENT WEIGHT: 184.3

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN FROM LAST WEEK: -.6lbs

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN TO DATE: -28.3lbs

GOAL BY APRIL 28: 178

LONG TERM GOAL:  145

STARTING MEASUREMENTS: 44 - 37.5 - 46.5 - 29 (chest, waist, hips, thigh)
LAST MEASUREMENTS: 40 - 32 - 40 - 25
CURRENT MEASUREMENTS: 39.5 - 32 - 39.5 - 25
MEASUREMENT LOSS TO DATE: 4.5 - 5.5 - 7 - 4

Well,  it doesn't look like I made my March goal (or even came anywhere close). So I guess I'll make that my April goal.

I have to be honest, I'm getting really... discouraged tired bored of diet and exercise. I'm officially on day 301 of the weigh in, but I had been dieting/exercising for another 2-3 months prior to that. That makes 1 full year of diet and exercise and the only thing that I have to show for it is a loss of 28lbs (that I know of. I don't know how much I weighed before that, but I speculate my all time high was around 230). My goal was 50lbs in 1 year. I barely made half of that and I still have another 40-50lbs to go. At the rate that I'm going now, that'll take me another 2 years. I'm tired of counting calories and writing down every single thing that I eat. I'm tired of working as hard as I can to find only minimal results or a gain. I miss eating at my favorite restaurants and having ice cream. I hate diet soda and miss my regular ones. I'm tired of being tired all the time because I spent every spare minute of my day trying to fit in some exercise.

I'm sure if I had more success over this last year,  I'm sure I'd feel differently, but right now, I'm starting to get really tired of diet and exercise.

Wordless Wednesday - Tea Party

She kept going to the sink and "filling" her cups with tea. Where can I get a tea dispensing sink?

Parenting & Mother's Day

The other day I was thinking about the things I learned from my mother about parenting. Honestly, I can't say that she ever came out and said "hey, you should try this" or "hey, maybe this would work for you", but I do think that I picked up a few things over the years.

If I had to choose the 1 major thing that I learned from her, it would be to independence. I learned at a very young age how to take care of myself and how not to rely on others to do those things for you. Being the oldest of many children, I started babysitting my siblings at a very young age. I started babysitting for money in middle school and got my first "real" job when I hit high school. On top of that, I had many extracurricular activities that I was a part of or helped run and still maintained good grades in my honors & AP classes. I paid for all of my own school trips and clothes and I liked not needing to rely on my mother for those things. I  liked being able to do them on my own.

I am trying to teach M responsibility and independence young, too. Maybe not to the same extent that I experienced it, but I would like her to know what she wants and how to do it properly. She already helps (and enjoys) vacuuming and cleaning the windows. It may only be for a minute or two before running off to play, but she does ask if she can help me. She also asks if she can feed the cats every night and if she drops any pieces, she quickly picks it up and puts in back in the bowl. Heck, she doesn't even like me to help her use the potty when we're potty training. She just runs right in there, sits down and goes.

Thinking about these things got me thinking about Mother's Day and the other mother's in my life. So I took a look at Tiny Prints' mother's day cards and I have to tell you, I'm really loving some of these. Here are a few of my favorites:

I love how bright and vibrant these cards are. They're absolutely perfect for spring! They even have mother's day cards for godmothers, stepmothers and grandmothers. I can't wait to pick some out.

Tiny Prints provides simple, modern and unique stationery from Father’s Day Cards to personalized greeting cards to thank you cards, business cards, and even custom wedding invitations or photo birth announcements. Offering exclusive designs from the nation’s top designers, easy card personalization, a powerful preview engine and top-notch customer service and paper quality, their designs have been lauded by numerous television networks, publications and celebrities. With Tiny Prints by your side commemorating every holiday and momentous occasion is a cinch! They offer perfect party invitations for every occasion and memorable personalized photo-gifts like notebooks, photo books and calendars to commemorate the event.

Note: I am receiving a Tiny Prints gift card for posting about this promotion. This does not affect my opinion or story in any way.

The Monster's 2nd Birthday - Part 2

My little monster turned 2 last month. We threw her a Minnie Mouse diva party because she's been very into Mickey Mouse Clubhouse lately. If you missed the decorations & cake, you can check them out here.

I was so glad that the snow didn't ruin M's birthday party again this year (we had to cancel her first birthday party due to a never-ending blizzard). She had a blast and that was all that mattered to me!

I made her dress the week before her party and the matching bows are from Bowquet's Bowtique on Etsy. These were a custom order from me and E (the owner of Bowquet) worked with me until they matched M's dress PERFECTLY. And they came super quick, too! I think I only ordered them maybe a week and a half before her party? And they got to me with plenty of time to spare. I get nearly all of M's bows from Bowquet (you see them hanging on the door in the picture below??? That's only half!) and highly recommend checking her out! She's even got some adorable spring/Easter bows ready to ship now! You can go visit her on Facebook, too.

Talking on the phone with her friend!

Opening presents

She thought this baby was hilarious. It kept saying "peekaboo, Mommy"

This one is my favorite!

My little diva <3

Talk about annoying....

You know what I find really annoying? When you finally get new tires after 2.5 years of driving on the same ones and not even 3 months later your tire pressure light turns on. Then, of course, you go to check and find something like this:

Weekly Weigh In - Week 42

<a href="http://www.danilykewoah.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="My Little Apricot" src="http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/danilykewoah/weighin.gif" /></a>

How Do I Participate:

1. Write a Blog Post. Somewhere in it you MUST post the 'Weekly Weigh-In' Button and your weight loss or gain. You do not need to post your actual weight, though it may be helpful for you.

2. Link up using the McLinky below (Please link to your actual Weekly Weigh-In post, NOT your main blog page)

3. Become a follower of My Little Apricot with GFC! 

4. Visit other blogs on the linky and show your support. Congratulate them on their weight-loss and encourage them when they are struggling! Be sure to return the favor if someone visits/follows you.

Remember, you don't need to link up on Thursdays. The linky is open for the whole week!

Last Week:

182.9

This Week:
184.9

STARTING WEIGHT: 211.6

LAST WEEK'S WEIGHT:182.9

CURRENT WEIGHT: 184.9

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN FROM LAST WEEK: +2lbs

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN TO DATE: -27.7lbs

GOAL BY MARCH 31: 178

LONG TERM GOAL:  145

STARTING MEASUREMENTS: 44 - 37.5 - 46.5 - 29 (chest, waist, hips, thigh)
LAST MEASUREMENTS: 41.5 - 31.5 - 40 - 25
CURRENT MEASUREMENTS: 40 - 32 - 40 - 25
MEASUREMENT LOSS TO DATE: 4 - 5.5 - 6.5 - 4

I had a feeling I'd be up this week. I was pms-y this week and I ate... a lot.... and I didn't exercise. Well, I did, but not enough. So, I expected a gain. Now that it's that time of the month, I know that part of the gain is just bloat. So all in all, being up 2 pounds isn't terrible.

Wordless Wednesday - Vacuuming

Bad news!

Sorry guys, it looks like the Madagascar Tour is being canceled. I'll have more details soon (hopefully).

Pretty Neat Giveaway { [ WINNER!!! ] }

What a great tip! Clutter is one of my family's biggest issues. Congratulations on winning and I hope you find some great tips in the book!

The Playground

M loves to go to the park and now that the weather is finally getting warmer here in the Philly suburbs (it'll be in the 70s tomorrow!), I've been trying to get her there a few times a week to play. I try to make it a point to actually walk around the park first and then head over to the playground - we might as well get some exercise in for Mommy, too! Of course, I made the mistake of trying to go on the walk AFTER the playground one time.... never again.

Since Jesse works late on Thursdays and it was warm out today, I figured we'd head over there for a bit (and by that I mean an hour and a half). We did our 15 minute lap around the smaller part of the lake and then headed over to the playground. Watching her play always makes me so happy. She's such a sweet little girl. Any time someone is doing something that she wants to try, she stands there and waits her turn. She doesn't even complain or get sad when someone cuts her off or jumps in front of her. She just turns and looks at me and says It's okay! Wait my turn! Here's my little 2 year old being cut in front of or pushed by the other kids (all ages) and just saying "It's okay. I'll wait". I can't describe in words how insanely proud this makes me.

Today a little 3 year old boy wanted to go on the swings, so I told her it was his turn since she already had been on them twice and he hadn't (she's met him before and he was nice to her, making sure the bigger kids didn't push her around). So she just walked over to the older kid swings and asked to go on that one instead.

Of course, now that we're 2, we want to try all the cool big kid things.

Can we talk about how this gives me a heart attack every time:

Weekly Weigh In - Week 41

<a href="http://www.danilykewoah.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="My Little Apricot" src="http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/danilykewoah/weighin.gif" /></a>

How Do I Participate:

1. Write a Blog Post. Somewhere in it you MUST post the 'Weekly Weigh-In' Button and your weight loss or gain. You do not need to post your actual weight, though it may be helpful for you.

2. Link up using the McLinky below (Please link to your actual Weekly Weigh-In post, NOT your main blog page)

3. Become a follower of My Little Apricot with GFC! 

4. Visit other blogs on the linky and show your support. Congratulate them on their weight-loss and encourage them when they are struggling! Be sure to return the favor if someone visits/follows you.

Remember, you don't need to link up on Thursdays. The linky is open for the whole week!

Last Week:

186.7

This Week:
182.9

STARTING WEIGHT: 211.6

LAST WEEK'S WEIGHT:186.7

CURRENT WEIGHT: 182.9

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN FROM LAST WEEK: -3.8lbs

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN TO DATE: -29.7lbs

GOAL BY MARCH 31: 178

LONG TERM GOAL:  145

STARTING MEASUREMENTS: 44 - 37.5 - 46.5 - 29 (chest, waist, hips, thigh)
LAST MEASUREMENTS: 41.5 - 31.5 - 40 - 25
CURRENT MEASUREMENTS: 40 - 32 - 40 - 25
MEASUREMENT LOSS TO DATE: 4 - 5.5 - 6.5 - 4

Woohoo! Nearly a 4lbs loss this week. I'm quite proud of that, though I do feel like I cheated a little bit. Saturday I started taking a weight loss supplement just to try it out. Everything else I did the same, so I'm happy that it's working, but I definitely feel guilty.

M & I walked around the park 3 times this week and using my trusty ipod/pedometer, I burned nearly 200 calories each time. It felt good. I love that the weather is getting nicer. It stinks that tomorrow is going to be 72 and I'll be stuck in an office all day, but hopefully it'll get warmer for the weekends soon, too. I threw in some weight training on the days that I didn't walk (and even a little when I did). 

My hubby works late today and tomorrow, so I think we'll be headed to the park 2 more times this week.

30DC: Get Moving - The End

Well, I've reached the end of my 30 day challenge. I made it. I exercised every day for 30 days. While I didn't see any weight loss (and I actually had weight gain instead), I do feel it was a worthwhile experience. I notice that I am more apt to exercising every day without forcing myself to and that is always a good thing. In the long run, it will make me a healthier person and that is a plus. So while I'm a little disappointed that I didn't lose any weight from this experiment, I am happy that I no longer have to force myself to work out. Lets hope it keeps up.

How time flies....

I was looking at pictures from last year around this time. I can't believe how much has changed!

Look how little M was:

 

She's a completely different person now.

Weekly Weigh In - Week 40

<a href="http://www.danilykewoah.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="My Little Apricot" src="http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/danilykewoah/weighin.gif" /></a>

How Do I Participate:

1. Write a Blog Post. Somewhere in it you MUST post the 'Weekly Weigh-In' Button and your weight loss or gain. You do not need to post your actual weight, though it may be helpful for you.

2. Link up using the McLinky below (Please link to your actual Weekly Weigh-In post, NOT your main blog page)

3. Become a follower of My Little Apricot with GFC! 

4. Visit other blogs on the linky and show your support. Congratulate them on their weight-loss and encourage them when they are struggling! Be sure to return the favor if someone visits/follows you.

Remember, you don't need to link up on Thursdays. The linky is open for the whole week!

Last Week:

185.6

This Week:
186.7

STARTING WEIGHT: 211.6

LAST WEEK'S WEIGHT:185.6

CURRENT WEIGHT: 186.7

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN FROM LAST WEEK: +1.1lbs

TOTAL LOSS/GAIN TO DATE: -25.9lbs

GOAL BY MARCH 31: 178

LONG TERM GOAL:  145

STARTING MEASUREMENTS: 44 - 37.5 - 46.5 - 29 (chest, waist, hips, thigh)
LAST MEASUREMENTS: 41.5 - 31.5 - 40 - 25
CURRENT MEASUREMENTS: 40 - 32 - 40 - 25
MEASUREMENT LOSS TO DATE: 4 - 5.5 - 6.5 - 4

I'm actually starting to get really discouraged. I've been exercising much more trying to tone in the last few weeks. I've also been eating much better - more vegetables, fewer processed/fast foods. And yet I seem to be gaining weight overall. My chest measurements went down slightly this week, but my waist went up. Everything else remained the same.

When I work out, I'm not feeling the effects anymore, even if I work out longer/harder. Tuesday, for example, I did 10 minutes of hula hoop, 10 minutes of belly dancing, 50 jumping jacks, 50 push ups, 3 minutes of weight training, 1 minute of jump rope plus a number of stretches. I always make sure to vary my work outs. In fact, the belly dancing was something I've never done before. I try to work out different muscle groups every day and I try to do some sort of all over work out every day. And yet, I feel gross.

I know the problem is with what I'm eating either. Last night, for example, I made taco mac & cheese with boca meat instead of ground beef. 1 serving was only 202 calories. Even if we had 2 servings (which I didn't), it's still around the average amount of calories for 1 meal. I did have a couple drinks this week, but I made sure to burn off enough calories to negate that.

So I'm stumped and feel like a fat cow. I've hit a plateau and I'm not sure what to do about it because I already eat very few calories - on some days, I only eat 1200 (the bare minimum for women) and I rarely eat over 1700 calories in a day. I cut out most processed foods. I don't drink regular soda or juice. I drink more water now than I ever have. I don't snack and if I do, I try to make it a yogurt or vegetables. I eat 1 lite yogurt per day to help boost my metabolism. I work out every day and vary my exercises so that my body doesn't get used to doing them every day. I don't know what else to do.

Pretty Neat Book Review + {GIVEAWAY}

 

I recently got my hands on a book called Pretty Neat by Alicia Rockmore & Sarah Welch. Organization & cleanliness has never been my strong point, so when my book came in the mail, I was really excited to delve right in. The goal of this book is to help readers let go of perfection and get organized in a way that works for them. Pretty Neat includes stories, tips, ideas and more from real-life people.

Honestly, I loved this book. It was easy to read - I got through it in about an hour total. It has some great tips and it really spoke to me. I grew up learning that everything needed to be pristine in order to be clean. This book tells you that that is NOT the case. It has some great confessionals from other moms, too. It even has a bit on organization and weight loss. How cool is that? I never considered 2 to be related before, but I definitely do now and I'm definitely going to be applying some of the tips to my routine.

All in all, I really enjoyed reading this book and I got a few really good ideas from it. I highly recommend checking it out, if you get a chance.

BUY IT! You can buy a paperback copy of Pretty Neat from Amazon for $10.17 or a kindle version for $9.58. AWESOME!

WIN IT!

All participants in this giveaway are also in the running

to win $200 and $50 worth of Buttoned Up goodies!

Giveaway Ends: March 21, 2011

Please leave a way to contact you in your comments!

Leave 1 comment per entry please.

Ways To Enter:  

Enter as many or as few ways as you'd like!

1. Follow my blog [1 entry]

2. Follow me on Facebook - leave your facebook name [1 entry]

3. Tweet about this giveaway & leave the link in your comment [1 entry per day]

4. Blog about this giveaway & leave the link in your comment [2 entries]

5. Give us one of your favorite organizational tips [1 entry]

6. Tell us about 1 area of your life that needs more organizing [1 entry]

Note: I received a Pretty Neat to check out before offering it to you guys. All opinions are my own.

Wordless Wednesday - Watching the Geese

Free Ibuprofen & Dental Floss at Target

If you head over to Target's coupon section of their website, you'll see 1 for for $1 off Up & Up Pain Relief items and $1 off Up & Up Oral Care items.

That means you can get a container of Up & Up Dental Floss (93 cents-ish) and Up & Up Ibuprofen (97 cents-ish) for free! So go stock up!!!