A Good Routine

This challenge has been so good for me. I feel like things got into a good rhythm and that is what carried me through. Drinking water and more fruits and veggies led to eating less of "other things." Which helped me gain closer to a pound a month instead of a week with this pregnancy.

And then I decided that instead of my afternoon nap I had to be on the eliptical during my daily lunch phone call with Ryan. By the time we were finished I was awake again and ready to keep going. I would save all my desserts for the evening, but usually finished putting theboys down after 8 pm and couldn't eat it then anyway!

And since I was starving by 10 I would usually go to bed instead of staying up too much later. Having to record my daily thoughts for my personal goal meant I had my iPod, which meant I set an alarm, which meant I woke up before the kids in order to pray and read scriptures.  It has been so great!

That said, I am thrilled to go back to my exercising only 3-5 days a week. And I hated having to shove my fancy dinner down before 7:59 last night because the restaurant took longer than expected to cook our meal (and since we hardly ever go to restaurants I was a bit bummed!!).

A Smaller Loser

I may not win this competition, but I have lost over 10 lbs during it (and we still have another week).  The different challenges have been good for me. I am usually naughty after 8 pm, so I have been a lot more behaved. I have been full with all the water drinking and veggie/fruit that I have been better.

So I like to think I will be a smaller loser at the end of this competion.

Points are up, and so are my kids

I took my own advice from last week, to add points first thing Tuesday in order to give myself the motivation I need. And it's worked! Like Marylynn I was a bit stunned when I added up my points yesterday. You'd think I wouldn't be, since I can tally them up all week. but I didn't. I put off the day of reckoning. I rationalized a bit here and there and then BAM! lowest personal score of any challenge I've done. It was a good wake up call.

Kinda like the "Potty! Diaper Change!" wake up call the kids gave us thirty minutes ago. It's 5:46 am right now and they're in their room awake. Oh well. Not unusual around here at all. I guess all you Midwesterns and Texans are already up anyway, right?

But back to points. I'm glad I've tallied them. You guys are so good. You keep doing this thing and I've loved to hear the "wins." Keep those coming. This is the last push to the finish and it's so fun to hear the successes. Also notice we have a tight race for second place: 4 ladies in the 390s. Keep it up!And Brittany, I think we're all cheering you on!

Good luck this week. My kids are calling out for "More light mama!" and "more books mama please!" In ten minutes, we'll start our day. Have a good one all.

Argh!

I added my points for the week in stunned silence.  I forgot to post something on the blog - missed an easy 10 points.  So frustrating!  But I am setting my sights on a perfect week this week! 

"Winning"

I'm so glad I'm doing this challenge!  Although I haven't done well at all with the exercising bit, I'm very pleased at the other changes I've been able to make.  I'm not going to "win" the competition but working on my personal goal is a definite win for me.  :)

Habits

I am so pleased with how healthy choices made every day can become habits just like bad ones (eating junk every night at bedtime) can.  I also love how my personal goal is a habit now as well rather than having to be a conscious decision every day.  Thanks for the challenge-- it has been so good for me!!!

Final Week!

Hey gang,

We're almost there! I just wanted to rejoice in what I've learned through this. I've learned that I don't like to work out every day (ha!). no, just kidding. Sort of. I guess I've learned that I like to feel active, but I don't like getting all sweaty and having to change into work out clothes and some how fit in a shower EVERY day (okay, maybe that's just because I'm lazy, but I don't generally shower every day (TMI?). It's really hard with kids! How does everyone else get around this working out/showering/kids obstacle?). BUT, I have learned then, that I can do other forms of exercise. Like Yoga. I even did it with my hubby last night and it was so much fun! I found it very doable, even/especially after a long day.

I've learned that I wasn't eating enough fruits/veggies. Not me, so not my kids. I've upped our food budget so that I can buy more of them. It's been great! And they love them. I'm happy for that change.

I have also learned that my body needs sleep. My mind needs sleep. My family needs me to get sleep. :) My personal goal throughout this challenge has really shown me what a different person I can be when I am well rested and prepared for the day. I've repeatedly reminded myself that this challenge is "to make every day intentional." So even if I'm feeling grumpy or bored or whatever some morning, it's a day with my beautiful children and my wonderful husband. And I'm going to LIVE it, not just get through it. I've learned that I can do that if I am rested, so sleep is key for me.

I'm excited for this last week. I feel great. And I'm excited to continue these habits afterwards (with slight adjustments...for weekends...). :) Good luck everyone! Finish strong. Go out with a bang!

Sick....

So we finally caught that stomach bug that is going around. It started with my 3 year old throwing up in the car on the way to get frozen yogurt (I was excited to get in my daily treat before 8!). Selfishly I was so frustrated because it was his brand new car seat! Guess it needed to be broken in... So after he had a rough night we caught it too and both my husband and I are down for the count today. Unfortunately it is really contagious so we can't even farm the kids out.

This kind of puts a damper in my challenge motivation. We'll see how this last week goes...

Grrrr

I never thought I would make it this far in the challenge without missing anything. I usually goof on some small thing and ruin it for myself... but after hanging in there for so long I was starting to get hopeful. 

Until last night, that is. I was hosting a baby shower at 8pm (so the kids would be in bed when we started - which "kind of" worked). I knew eating was not an option, so I made a pina colada slush that I would be able to drink and still kind of participate in the festivities.  All went well, people brought yummy food, I got it all set out on the table and was talking to Amanda about how I was going to be fine without eating anything.

Literally 20 seconds later I went to make sure the table was ready (at 8:20pm), which it was, and when I went back into the kitchen it dawned on me that I had just eaten ONE piece of fresh pineapple (making sure it tasted okay). I was so angry!!  I was so ready to eat  nothing at all, and in a thoughtless moment it went out the window...again.

I know it really is NOT a big deal, but I was reminded once again of how many times I habitually do/eat things without even THINKING first....just pop it in my mouth...   Arg...

Best of luck to Brittany! See if you can pull in that perfect score for the group. :)

Travel and Benefits

So this past week, I traveled down to visit my brother and his family. It was really hard to drink the water I needed (specifically when I was on the road), but most especially to get the fruits and vegetables on a menu that was not my own! It was hard to pass up all the popcorn, birthday cake, cheese dip, root beer floats, chocolate cheesecake, bacon-wrapped chicken and hot chocolate that was served after 8. But I was strong! It felt like a double victory because it was a stretch.

Okay, so I have to say that I've found a benefit I didn't expect from being more hydrated. So I've finally got contacts to work for me; and they're hard ones. Before I started this challenge, I had trouble getting them out at night (they weren't just popping out like they should). This was, of course, because my eyes were dry. Now that I'm consciously drinking throughout the day, that is no longer a problem. A little less panic in my nightly routine is awesome!