Weekly Weigh In

Wow, the week just flew by. With all the cancellations of school because of snow, cleaning, shopping, and organizing then Monday's day off and yesterday's yucky weather. It's no wonder the week just flew.

A few people asked what my stats were before I started all of this, so here goes.

*227 was my highest weight while pregnant with Oliver

*205 is what I dropped down to by my 6 week follow-up appointment after having him

*198 is what I weighed in at for my "yearly" in December

and today's weight is..............185!! And I did exactly what I said I was going to do too. Last week when the weather was better, I went and tried on a size 10 pair of pants. And they fit. Talk about a great feeling!!

So as of today, I have about 5 pounds left to hit my goal weight of 180 by February 15th. I have another follow-up with my OB/GYN and it would just feel so good to know I worked so hard to loose the weight from my last visit with her.

I will continue to give myself "mini" goals until I am happy with the overall experience. Then the truly hard part will come in. Keeping it off. I am struggling with that more then the actual day-to-day loosing. But I keep reminding myself "one day at a time" and things will work out just fine.

See you all next week!!

After Party

Here is a little sneak peak of the "after party" I hope to get the rest of the photos up from the Birthday Party later in the week. Enjoy!

After Party Sleepiness The "twins" were ready for bed in a big way

 

The Birthday Girl all ready for bed. She even put all her new "friends" to bed in my bed

 

Happy 30th!!

To the most wonderful husband in the world. And I do mean that!! Before his birthday completely gets over shadowed by his daughter's 5th Dinosaur Birthday Party, I wanted to take a few moments to honor such a wonderful and respectable man.

Happy Birthday to the most incredible guy I know. I know if your mom was here now, she would be so very proud of you and all you have accompilished on your own. I know I am. Hugs sweetie.

Jason about 2 or 3 months old with his mom

 

A few pictures of Jason and his baby brother Jaime. I am thinking they are about 3 and 6 months in this photo?

 

My handsome man after graduating from Northeastern University. I was so proud. I am sure his mom was too!

 

My hubby now. Look at all those adorable little kiddos.

 

Weigh In and Snow Day

As I promised, today is weigh in day. On top of that, it was also a snow day here in Johnston. Its pretty bad out too. I wouldn't be surprised if we got close to 2 feet of snow. Though being from Maine, I am rather use to the white stuff. Its kind of funny to see the people in Rhode Island scrabble around for the smallest of items. Bread, milk, salt for the roads, shovels. You name it. Seriously people, its snow. It will melt in a weeks time. Stop worrying!!

Anyways, got side tracked. My weigh in for today is.....drum roll please......

187 WOOT!! I am at a 37 inch waist right now. Which means I have lost about 7 inches so far. Doesn't seem like it when I look in the mirror, but my pants say otherwise. I think after this storm is over, I just might go and try on a size 10 pair of jeans :-)

I am doing really well. I don't feel "hungry" as much as I use too. Right now though I want to snack more then usual as my wonderful "friend" is visiting and along with her visit is bringing the munchies. I settled for some peanuts mixed with dark chocolate M&M's which seems to do just fine cutting down my snack/hunger cravings.

I continue to put in about 30-45 minutes of the Wii along with housework, casing kiddos, and up and down the stairs about a billion times, I have to say I am shedding the pounds at a steady pace of about 2 pounds a week. Not to shabby.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to..........................

Emma-James!! My how time just flies by. I am still in awe that she is 5 years old. I remember the few days after Anabelle passed. We went to the funeral home and were granted our last visit and good-byes with her. It was hard. I held her forever, waiting for that moment of "peace" to pass over me. The time I knew it was going to be okie to let her go. Then it hit me.....seriously, just as hard I was crying that she was gone, I gave her one last kiss, put her down, and knew that I was going to be okie. See.....at that moment, I heard this tiny little voice that said everything was going to be okie. I will keep the details of the rest of that evening to my heart, but I can honestly say, it was something special.

5 months later, we were blessed to find out we were expecting Emma. I knew immediately what her name would be. That she was a girl. And that she would be something very special. Emma-James graced us with her presence full force. I knew she was a true gift from her big sister in heaven when I saw her tiny little bum covered in a very large heart shaped birthmark. We knew than that she was picked especially for us.

Here is a little recap of Emma-James over the last 5 years. What a joy it has been to be her mommy. Though some days can be tough, she has more love, spunk and determination then any little girl I know. She is truly one-of-a-kind and I am so very honored to be her mommy.

Emma-James minutes old

 

Olivia holding Emma-James for the first time. She was EXTREMELY impatient. She was even allowed in the delivery room with us when she was born. And all she kept saying, was "hurry up mommy, I am waiting, I am waiting"

 

Emma-James all stretched out. Notice the really bad bruising on her face :-(

 

Emma-James at 1 month old. Such a little cuttie

 

Emma-James 6 weeks old all bundled up to head to the Museum of Science, Boston

 

6 months old. We took our very first trip to NYC for my best friends wedding. It was so much fun and the girls had a blast.

 

9 months old and ready for her first Halloween. All dressed up as a piggy! So cute.

 

Her First Birthday picture before her party. Isn't she a cuttie!

 

This is by far my favorite picture of her. Either she didn't like her birthday cake, or she was just super bummin' about something, she just seems so sad in this picture. But I just love her expression

 

18 months old

 

18 months old and hanging out at the Ocean for the first time

 

2 years old and such a cutie. Her curly hair is really starting to come in right about now

 

2 1/2 years old

 

Emma-James at her 3rd Birthday. Thomas the Train was pretty heavy that year. Look at all those CURLS!!! Such a little doll I tell you

 

3 1/2 years old

 

4 years old. We didn't do much this year for her Birthday. Mommy was pregnant with Ollie after just having Ezme a few months prior so we decided to keep it low key

 

4 1/2 years old! Gosh, where did the time go. And still just as spunky and beautiful as she was the day she was born

 

Her big 5 Year-Old Picture will be posted after her Birthday Party!! Hope you have enjoyed looking at the photos as much as I had fun going through all of them and taking a trip down memory lane.

The Reality

You know, basically in a nutshell. Reality bites. I am sure everyone (INCLUDING ME) is sick of hearing it. But your house bites. I love my house, I hate that its worth less then the ground its on. Seriously. Just so angry, bitter, emotional, ticked off (at one person in particular and no, its not my hubby or God) I feel stuck on so many levels and currently I just don't know how to "help" the situation.

I have tried for 2 years to find a job, no luck. This doesn't mean I have stopped trying. I am currently searching every venture out there that will work. Jason and I will be talking about some long and short term goals in regards to the kids, house, money in the very near future. Questions such as, should we sell "BY OWNER" or should we "RENT" this house and I move home until we have something saved up where we can purchase something bigger. What do we do about the kids. Should we send Owen to Pre-School in the fall? Do we send Olivia to the 3rd grade or Emma-James to Kindergarten despite how we are feeling right now toward the school? Do we spend more money on our current home, beef it up so to say, and add on another room? How long is too long? 3 years, 5 years, 10 years? Do we wait for the market to slightly improve, gain steady momentum, or be at the highest peak it has been in more the 5 years?

The answer to all of these questions is a simple..................I DO NOT KNOW!

I just don't know. I am stressed when it comes to this particular situation. Stressed for Jason, stressed for my kids, stressed for me. I have so many questions, but no answers. And I think in the end, this is what frustrates me more. The best thing I can do is continue with my faith, hold strong that something better and wonderful will come along. Patience wins the race. So I chug along, patiently waiting...............................

House

Well, we found out for sure that the house we have been trying to purchase and felt that we really had a good chance went under contract today. Seriously, almost 5 months on the market and not a single bite and suddenly we scrabble to do what we can to put an offer on the table and BAM. Makes me sad to say the least. Trying not to be bitter but its hard. That house really was the perfect house. I think I might try to get Jason to just purchase land and save up for a few years to build. I think realistically it will be the only way for us to get exactly what we want. Ho hum.

I am spending the next few days purchasing items to get the house ready for market. We decided not to wait on that issue. Gives me something to do at least. And forces the kids to make better choices as far as cleaning up goes :-)

And we start over again....

Weight

Way back many many and I do mean MANY moons ago, I was a healthy weight of 168. Though HOW I got there is less then desirable, I did get there. I managed to do pretty good keeping it within a 2-3 pound range for a long time. Especially hard when you are living in Boston, on a College campus, and the smells of every food imaginable all around you 24/7 is a pretty good feat if I say.

I was blessed to get pregnant with Olivia in the spring of 2002. I gained the appropriate amount of weight while pregnant and was clearly in tunnel vision when I thought I would loose the weight quickly. Nursing, many long walks, swimming, biking, you name it. I had it all planned out. However, reality kicked in and that was not meant to be. The stress of living with Jason's family, being away from mine, lonely while Jason was at school, and the overall feeling of dread was something I had not anticipated. The weight seemed to come on more, instead of less. Things of course didn't get much worse for the first year of Olivia's life.

Then we lost Jason's mom and shortly after found out we were expecting again. HAPPY TIME. Though short lived. We found out in the summer of 2004 that Anabelle had was was believe to be Trisomy 18. I actually tried to pack on the weight to help her gain weight but in the end, she wasn't able to gain much more and I didn't seem to gain anything either. I still of course had the baby weight from Olivia, but found that I just wasn't motivated to do anything about it.

Four months later I was blessed with Emma-James in the spring of 2005. I gained the right amount of weight with her. Expected things to come off quickly, and bam. No such luck. We were busy moving, getting our new house ready for a baby, getting Olivia in nursery school, etc. etc. etc.

So lets add in 2007 with Owen, 2009 with Ezme and 2010 with Oliver. NUTS!! I was happy that I lost all the weight with Owen,Ezme and Oliver. But I was still at my heaviest.


At my peak on October 2010 at my 6 week follow-up after having Olivier, I had managed to loose all the weight I gained with him and be at a weight of 205.

Just before Thanksgiving I decided it was time. Why wait for the New Year. Why keep saying to myself "tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow" I wanted to start something at the hardest part of the year and promise myself to stick with it. This way I had a better chance at fighting Christmas and the massive birthday's in January.

Well..........I am pretty impressed with myself. With a little love from my Wii Fit Plus and some major changes in my diet. I have managed to go from:

189!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have lost 5 inches off my waist, dropped a jean size and feel pretty good.

I am tickled pink and darn happy too. I watch what I eat, read the labels, count calories. Jason loves it because milk now lasts a good week vs. 4 days. Being a HUGE milk drinker (skim or 1%) still added up calories. I drink lots of water, still indulge myself with chocolate (dark) and still enjoy all the foods that Jason cooks. Just in smaller portions. Eating on a smaller dessert plate has really helped with eating less. I also try to get in anywhere between 30-45 minutes of work out time right after breakfast.

My goal every Wednesday to hopefully post a picture and give you an update on how I am doing.

I figured my dream home might not come true, but my goal weight will. My Goal weight for June 21st is to be 160 and a BMI of 24. That would actually make me 8 pounds less then when I was 11 years ago. Go, Go, Go!!!

HOUSE FOR SALE?!

Looks like if we are really lucky we will be getting the house on the market as soon as possible. I will be adding the rest of the pictures (bathroom, master bedroom) as soon as possible. If you know of anyone who would like to move to the RI area, and is looking for a fantastic house, close to two major highways, and has the best neighbors around, then look no further. I have faith I tell you, faith!!

Dining Room from Front Door (Our door is more like a side door as we do not have a true front door)

 

Dining room, part of kitchen bar looking from Front Door

 

Built in Office in Dining Room (far wall)

 

Fireplace in Dining room (Made this myself, favorite thing in my house!)

 

Picture taken from Built in Office looking at the rest of the dining room, part of the living room, part of the kitchen

 

Part of Living Room from Front Door

 

Living room from Dining room table

 

Living Room from Sliding Glass door. Leading to Backyard. You can see part of the dining room too

 

Inside Kitchen looking at Bar, Dining room and built in office

 

Entire Kitchen looking from Front Door (in dining room)

 

Looking from Bathroom door. Stairs that leads to second floor. Disregard the painting and dirty rug. I have yet to finish either. On the left hand side you can see the laundry room and double ovens. On the right, is the stairs to the cellar.

 

Looking at Entire Kitchen from the stairs leading to second floor. Door leads to only bathroom

 

Second floor pictures!

Girls room from top of stairs. Back Green room is Master Bedroom

 

The Girls Double Bunks. We were so lucky finding bunk beds that would accommodate the low ceilings. Emma-James on the top, Olivia on the bottom

 

View of Girls room from Master bedroom. Stairs to the right next to the window. Owen's room is to the left. Double closet doors to walk in closet

 

Owen's room from his door

 

View from Owen's bed

 

View from Owen's bed looking at the Enterance

 

View from window with air conditioning unit

 

I promise as soon as I can get around to it, I will take photos of the master bedroom, the bathroom and a few other odds and ends. Hope you guys enjoy.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to.................ME!!!!

Today is my birthday. Hard to believe I am 31, GASP!!!!! Seriously. How in the world did I go from turning 16 and begging to be 21, to suddenly looking over and finding myself 31, married, with six kiddos and more happiness then I could ever imagine.

Not only is today my birthday, but it is also my wedding anniversary. 6 years ago today the man and love of my life asked me to be his forever love and married me after putting together a wonderful and very special wedding in less then 16 hours!! It will be a day I never in my wildest dreams forget.

My day was spend rather plainly. Hubby made me breakfast in bed. I was awoken by 4 little hungry gremlins that woke me up rather abruptly. After eating a few bites of my breakfast while watching my kiddos devour the rest (hungry little hippos) I got up to get ready for the day to start.

We didn't do much really. Had a second viewing on a house we really like. Took a ride to Target to purchase some much needed new pants for the hubby and then went out to eat at UNO's for supper. Nothing special, but tons of fun.

So now that I am a year older, wiser and gosh darn it, prettier, I think its time to retrieve to my bed for a little SKIP-BO with my favorite main squeeze and a toast to good things to come!!

TOP 100 THINGS TO ACCOMPLISH IN 2011

Instead of typing up a NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION I wanted to do something different. I want this year to be a year of accomplishments, not promises to myself. Though they sort of go hand in hand, I wanted to feel better about accomplishing something in my life rather then promising myself. I find I don't gain anything from trying to keep promises. So, what are your 100 Accomplishments you would like to do before we say good-bye to 2011?

1. Loose 30 Pounds by June 2011 or by the end of the year
2. Purchase a Bigger "FOREVER" home
3. Open up a Nursery School/Day Care
4. Sell our current house or Rent it out
5. Find a job that allows us to bring in an extra income but still be full-time parents (very important to us)
6. Eat healthier (started this in Nov. and so far so good)
7. More community involvement
8. Be a better friend (more friend time)
9. Be a better wife (Specifically, better listener)
10.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy 1-1-11!!!!! It's such a great day. New Year. New beginnings. New Adventures! I am very excited to find out what this year will bring us. I am sure as almost all "NEW YEARS" do will bring sadness to my heart and bruises to my soul that will heal slowly over time.

However, this is a happy post. I am so excited to see what 2011 has in store for us. A new house, new baby, new job? All are pretty exciting if you ask me. I really can't say what might come about. I am actively trying to find a job (and have been for a year) that will work for my family. A new house has been in the works now for over a year as well, and a new baby, I can't say that is in our "TOP 100" things to do before the year is out. Though you never know what God's plans are.

Jason and I are of course starting the NEW YEAR off right. Today with a high of 55 degrees outside we will be spend cleaning the inside. Laundry, dishes, organizing. Tomorrow is my birthday and I want nothing more to do then to enjoy it without worrying about cleaning, washing or organizing something.

Last year I posted on New Years *What is your NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS" And a few people posted too. This year, instead lets post "TOP 100 THINGS YOU WANT TO DO BEFORE THE YEAR IS OUT"

Happy 2011 everyone, if your not already a follower of my blog, I would love to see you join!!