Saturday, August 25, 2012

Weekly Meal Plan: August 27-September 2

Last week I didn't faithfully follow my meal plan. Schedules were strange and I was craving Chinese food so I switched it up without even going back to the grocery store. Good news is that I don't have to buy much this week.

Monday-
Friday- Crock pot tacos: http://mychocolatetherapy.blogspot.com/2012/01/crockpot-chicken-tacos.html.




Tuesday- Skinny Salisbury Steak: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/01/skinny-salisbury-steak-with-mushroom.html



Wednesday- Grilled Flatbread Pizza: http://www.bethenny.com/2011/07/08/grilled-flatbread-pizza-with-roasted-garlic-ricotta-cheese-fresh-tomatoes-and-basil


Thursday- Grilled tilapia with steamed veggies.



Friday- Skinny Enchilada Lasagna: http://www.mamalaughlin.com/2012/07/pinspiration-wednesday-skinny-enchilada.html with corn.


Saturday- Eat Out

Sunday- Leftovers

Sunday, August 19, 2012

thrifty: old and new

Today I wore those white shorts that I thrifted back in the beginning of July! I wore them and they fit- perfectly! Woo hoo! My health and fitness journey is really paying off when it comes to my closet. I mixed those shorts with things I've owned for 3+ years today. One of my favorite pairs of wedges, my favorite necklace, and a classic black t-shirt.

Top: Target
Shorts: thrifted; Express
Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: American Eagle

Friday, August 17, 2012

Weekly Meal Plan: August 20-26

Monday- Mexican Turkey Burgers: http://www.bethenny.com/2010/05/13/mexican-turkey-burger/ with beans.


Tuesday- Skinny Salisbury Steak: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/01/skinny-salisbury-steak-with-mushroom.html



Wednesday- Grilled Flatbread Pizza: http://www.bethenny.com/2011/07/08/grilled-flatbread-pizza-with-roasted-garlic-ricotta-cheese-fresh-tomatoes-and-basil


Thursday- Grilled tilapia with streamed veggies.



Friday- Whole wheat spaghetti with tomato sauce and ground chicken.



Saturday- Leftovers/Eat Out

Sunday- Chicken, red skin potatoes, and green beans

thrifty: black & khaki

I think for most women, after having babies, one of your first personal goals is to be able to wear clothes that you wore before getting pregnant. The was definitely a personal goal of mine. I reached my pre-pregnancy weight this week so I got a little more brave about trying on clothes. These shorts I'm wearing today are nothing fancy. I bought them for $3.00 at the thrift store because they were a good basic but I could barely button them last July. It wasn't pretty. So today, after a great workout of strolling the girls through the neighborhood, I figured I'd give them a try. They fit! They fit with no muffin top. Woo hoo! Yay for thrifty finds that fit!





Top: thrifted; brand unkown
Shorts: thrifted; Merona; Target
Shoes: American Eagle

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Julianna's Beat Box Boogie

Olivia- 3 months + video

Olivia is 3 months old today! Our sweet baby girl is growing so fast and developing such a sweet personality. She's still cooing and babbling all of the time but now she's added in happy squeals! It's adorable! She's still tries to roll over and gets stuck on her side. I think she'll get it soon though. I'm not sure of her exact weight but I'd say she weighs about 14 lbs. or so and is at least 24 inches. Here's a video of her "talking" and trying to roll over yesterday:


Olivia Grace, 3 months old :)

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Health & Fitness: Day 44 & 45 + Progress Pictures & Weigh-In

Yesterday was an exercise bust since we went out to lunch for 2 hours. But today I completed 30 days of the 30 Day Shred!!! Woo hoo! It took me 45 days to complete it but I guess that's not too bad considering I have 2 little people demanding my attention. I have to exercise during naps and the occasional independent play.

But the 45 days was so worth it! I weighed myself last night and guess what?! HELLO PRE-PREGNANCY WEIGHT! I am down the 30 lbs. that I gained during my pregnancy. It took me 45 days to lose those last 8 lbs. A complete change in diet, giving up soft drinks, and almost daily exercise got me here. It wasn't easy but I'm so proud of myself for doing it! Now that I've made it to my first goal weight now onto my 2nd goal weight!

I won't be doing the daily post anymore, maybe just weekly to keep myself on track. I'm going to start a new Jillian Michaels DVD next week but I'm going to go back and do the 30 Day Shred workouts until Monday.

Day 44 Exercise
-none

Day 45 Exercise
-20 minutes of the 30 Day Shred

Monday, August 13, 2012

Health & Fitness: Day 41-43

Day 41 and 42 were a bust. I didn't exercise. It's extra hard to exercise on the weekends because I want to spend as much time possible with my husband. His job is really demanding and he works long hours. Anytime he's home, family time is a priority. Next weekend, I think I'm going to make him workout with me. Even though that goes against my "no one watch me" workout policy.

Day 43 Exercise:
-20 minutes of the 30 Day Shred Level 3 and 30 minutes of Kinect Adventures-- it's a game but a workout at the same time!

Tomorrow is my 30th day of the 30 Day Shred. I plan on "weighing in" tomorrow after my workout. Regardless of my number on the scale, I know the 30 Day Shred has changed my body. I can wear pretty much all of my pre-pregnancy clothes, my body is more tone than it was even before Olivia, and I have so much more energy. I feel good about myself again! Woo hoo!

I took these pictures for my thrifty section of my blog but they also show off my fitness progress as well :)

thrifty: stripes and solids

I'm still gravitating towards stripes while I'm out thrifting. The horizontal stripe supposedly makes you look "wider" but I find that it hides some of the stuff you don't want noticed. I'm really just loving any thing with a pattern right now. I also love bright colors. My skin is pretty fair so bright colors tend to look better on me than light ones. I found this skirt on my thrifting trip to Goodwill a couple of weeks ago and I got this shirt while I was shopping at Carolina Thrift. The shoes I bought almost 2 year ago at Plato's Closet.

$3.75 Lily Pulitzer Goodwill find :)




Shirt: thrifted; brand unknown
Tank Top: Downeast Basics
Skirt: thrifted; Lily Pulitzer
Shoes: thrifted; Mossimo, Target

Friday, August 10, 2012

Heath & Fitness: Day 37-40

I'll admit it, I've been slacking. I can't even remember if I worked out on Tuesday but I know I didn't on Wednesday or Thursday. But I have a good reason. Josh was out of town. Julianna doesn't sleep well when daddy isn't home so she fought her sleep for 2 nights and Olivia also decided to wake up every 2 hours. The result? Mommy got hardly any sleep. No sleep = no energy. But the girls made up for it last night. Daddy was back at home and they both slept for at least 12 hours! This is a first! I am so very thankful for my 9 hours of sleep last night. Today I definitely completed my workout to the best of my ability! Two more days of level 3 and my 30 days will be complete.

Day 40 Exercise:
-20 Minutes of the 30 Day Shred

Olivia- 12 weeks

Little Olivia is 12 weeks old! She has become even more "talkative" this week. She laughs and giggles when you clap her hands together. She's getting better at tummy time and will tolerate it for longer periods of time. She also enjoys sitting in her Bumbo chair. Our big girls is growing quickly too. She's moving into her 3-6 month clothing!


Thursday, August 9, 2012

Weekly Meal Plan: Week of August 13-19

Monday- Chicken Ranch Tacos: http://pedersenfood.blogspot.com/2011/05/chicken-ranch-tacos.html but I plan on slow cooking the chicken in the crockpot this way: Use 2 lbs. of raw (not frozen) chicken breast, 1 packet of dry ranch dressing, 1 packet chicken taco seasoning & 1 can of chicken broth. Put that all in the crockpot and cooked on low for 3 hours then shredded the chicken and let it cook on low another 30 min. Heat the taco shells and assemble your tacos.

Tuesday- Salmon: http://thedevilspunchbowl.wordpress.com/2012/05/03/drinking-coffee-at-8pm-fierce/ with a salad- spring mix with strawberries and light raspberry vinaigrette dressing.


Wednesday- Chili Lime Chicken Burger: http://www.supperforasteal.com/chili-lime-chicken-burger/#comment-182 with baked beans.

Thursday- Steak with baked red skin potatoes and green beans.

Friday- Homemade pizza, 5 cheese with turkey pepperoni.

Saturday- Skinny Enchilada Lasagna: http://www.mamalaughlin.com/2012/07/pinspiration-wednesday-skinny-enchilada.html with corn.

Sunday- Leftover Day

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

thrifty: clothes for the kiddos

I'm not the only one in the house that wears thrifted clothes. Most of Josh's clothes are also thrifted. He got a really nice Ralph Lauren striped polo on Saturday. He's wearing it tomorrow. Maybe he'll let me photograph him for the blog. Besides what I've received from baby showers and as gifts, most of my girls' clothes are thrifted. Kids ruin clothes so I'd rather not pay $20 for an outfit that will be worn once and ruined or outgrown in a week. They both wore adorable, thrifted outfits today. Julianna's was particularly fun. I'm not sure what the brand is but this little shirt is so fun and colorful. Very unique! I know she'll never run into another 2 year old wearing the same shirt. The best part is that I bought this adorable shirt for only 99 cents!





Monday, August 6, 2012

Health & Fitness: Day 36

Today was my 27th workout since I started the 30 Day Shred. 3 more days of Level 3 to go.

Day 36 Exercise:
-20 minutes of the 30 Day Shred Level 3

Thrifty: for fitness

I workout just about daily but I never leave my house to do it. I've been doing the 30 Day Shred at home in the comfort of my living room. So do I need cute workout outfits? Nope. My 2 year old wouldn't mind if I exercised in my pajamas. But let's be real. Sometimes I wear my workout clothes all day long before I have a chance to actually workout or shower. So yes, I want to be cute in my workout clothes since I may wear them all day. I found this Under Armour shirt for just $3.75. It was my size, it fits well, and it perfect for working out.



Shirt: thrifted; Under Armour
Capris: Wal-Mart, Athletic Works
Shoes: Asics

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Health & Fitness: Day 34 & 35

Day 34 & 35 have been "no exercise days". No nap for Julianna yesterday and today we're having some family time. Back to Jillian on Monday!

Thrifty: pretty purple dress

I got this dress on Friday during my mini thrifting trip to the local Goodwill. It's Calvin Klein and was only $5.00. Like I said in my last thrifty post, it almost didn't come home with me due to it's size label. It says an extra small and this mommy of 2 babies is not an extra small! I typically wear a medium so I almost didn't try it on. But I remembered a really important thrifting rule- don't listen to the label, try it on! So glad I did! I wore this pretty purple dress to church this morning.



Dress: thrifted; Calvin Klein
Tank Top: Downeast Basics
Earrings: The Jewel Box
Sandals: Target

Friday, August 3, 2012

Thrifty: new finds!

My husband came home earlier from work today so after I fed Olivia, I headed down the street to the Goodwill- by myself! I haven't been anywhere alone in a long time. It felt good to just get out of the house without the diaper bag and a sippy cup. I browsed for about 20 minutes. Tried out several things but walked away with one dress, one skirt, and one shirt for just over $12.00. For my next 3 thrifty posts, I'm going to show you "thrifty" outfits featured my new items. This is what I got...


This shirt is Under Armuor...in case you couldn't already tell by the logo on the front. My husband is a huge Under Armour fan. So when I walked in the house and told him I got an Under Armour shirt he got all excited thinking it was for him... sorry, honey, this one is all mine! These shirts retail at about $25 so I got a great deal at $3.75- it looks good as new.


This skirt is from Lilly Pulitzer and I paid just $3.75 for it! Woo hoo! I love Lilly Pulitzer clothing but let's be serious... it's too stinkin' expensive! Their skirts usually range from $70-$100. No way! I'm too cheap for that so I was so excited to find this pretty blue skirt in my size!


This is a Calvin Klein dress and I almost didn't try it on. It's an extra small so I didn't think there was anyway it was going to fit. Thank goodness for trying it on! It actually runs big and fits me perfectly! A great thrifting tip: never pass up on an item just because it doesn't say "your size"... try it on anyway! I got this pretty dress for just $5.00.
  

Health & Fitness: Day 33

Today I completed another day of level 3. I have 4 more days of level 3 to complete my full 30 days of the 30 Day Shred. Not stepping on the scale is killing me. I want to know where I'm at but I don't want to feel discouraged. I also wish I had a better scale but I'm too cheap to purchase a new one. I did fit into another pair of shorts without a muffin top! Woo hoo!

Day 33 Exercise:
-20 minutes of the level 3 of the 30 Day Shred

The reason why those shorts stayed in my closet. I'd rather wear yoga pants than have that uncomfortable muffin top!

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Weekly Meal Plan: Week of August 6-12

This week will be a little different. Josh won't be eating dinner with us Monday-Wednesday or Saturday so it'll just be Julianna and I those nights. I plan on using some coupons ($2.00 off a salad and a $1.99 kids meal at Wendy's) and eating "fun" food those nights since we don't need as big of a meal.

Monday- homemade 5 cheese pizza

Tuesday- Wendy's coupon (don't worry-- I'll choose something healthy!)

Wednesday- baked sweet and sour chicken with fried rice: http://life-as-a-lofthouse.blogspot.com/2010/09/baked-sweet-and-sour-chicken-with-fried.html



Thursday- grilled tilapia and steamed veggies

Friday- skinny sour cream enchiladas: http://skinnymom.com/2012/05/11/skinny-sour-cream-enchiladas/



Saturday- Wendy's coupon

Sunday- Leftover Day

Now, I'll use this meal plan to create my grocery list. To create my grocery list, I go back through each of my recipes that I plan on using. I organize the list into the following categories: refrigerated, non-refrigerated, frozen, produce, and meat. I add the items that I don't already have at home to the list in the correct category. Categorizing your grocery list makes grocery shopping quicker and more efficient. Especially when you're shopping with a 2 month old and 2 year old!

When I shop, I always try to get the lowest priced item so I often buy the store brand. But if there is a lower calorie, lower fat option that is not a store brand, I buy that.

Olivia- 11 weeks

Olivia has been busy this week. I figured out that she doesn't really like the playmat. She'll "play" there for a few minutes but doesn't really care much about it. So instead I laid out one of her blankets on the floor and put here there. She loves it! She'll stay on her tummy about 5-10 minutes and lay on her back for up to 30 minutes. She stares at the ceiling fan and light and "talks" to me. She's been doing a little moving on her mat too. She's attempting to roll. She rolls over to her side and back to her back several times in a row.

Another new thing this week was the Bumbo. She sat in the Bumbo for the first time on Tuesday. She wasn't really sure what to think of it but she did stay in it for about 5 minutes before she was fussy. Big sister seems to think the Bumbo is a potty- she stripped down and sat in it. Thankfully she didn't actually go potty in it!

Olivia also went to storytime at the library and to the movies for the first time this week. Our theater has $1.00 children's movies once a week during the summer. It wasn't a disaster. Each of my girls got a little fussy here and there but we successfully watched Winnie the Pooh in it's entirety. Olivia had a busy week!

Trying to roll.

Happy girl!

First time in the Bumbo.

At the movies.