Training update!

I'm at the tail end of week 3 of 25 weeks and doing great still! I've only missed 2 days of the last 3 weeks and those were due to sick kids :-( I'm feeling stronger and stronger every time I get on that treadmill. I can't wait for it to be warm enough outside so I can take the girls with me and burn some extra calories by pushing them! Not to mention since I've started my training program for the marathon I've gone down another 5 lbs! Woo Woo!

I'm starting to think that everyon forgot that we're still in a contest for $400. I know my dad is still going strong, my mom said she's given up, Deija said Ben has kinda forgotten, I'm not sure about Jarum, so that leaves it to me and my dad by my calculations! He's a ROCK, he hasn't cheated once since we started in Jan, and I haven't been even close to 100%, but I'm still losing and that's all that matters to me!

Random Pics over the last couple of weeks!

Wade bought the girls Build-a-Bear gift cards for Christmas and we finally got around to going the other day. Devyn picked out a cute little chick and named her Kickie (I think she was trying to say chickie, but not if we don't call her Kickie, she corrects us) Dylan picked out a 'Fancy Nancy' Dog and named her Fluffy Bones! Thanks Wade, we had a blast!

YAY! It's Motorcycle Weather! Devyn LOVES riding with Daddy! She keeps asking him "ride cycle daddy pease?"
Dylan and Daddy going for a Ride! Love the Barbie Helmet! We gotta find one for Devyn so Mom can breath easier when they're going around the block!
Random pic of me and my Cockatoo hair or Rooster hair....whatever you wanna call it...I think it's cute so I'm keeping it!
Daddy got the '55 Packard out the other day! I think this year he's really going to fix it up! He went and applied for a title, so I'm hoping that means he's serious!

Think Spring!

Beau, Dylan and Devyn coming down the slide
Good sisters Share! How many times a day do you think I say that one?
Grandpa Brad and Devy

Ok, it's GORGEOUS outside today! It's making me crazy to get in the dirt and work on my flower beds, get in a swimming suit and soak up some sun, and run and do cartwheels in the sprinklers! I saw the new report and noticed that we're supposed to have another storm this weekend....what's up Mother Nature? Why are you teasing me like this?



Today for lunch we went to the park with Deija, Beau, Abby and Kallie. It was soo nice to soak up the sun and fill up my low reserves of Vitamin D. It was great for the kids to run crazy for a while too!



So everyone think warm, sunny, spring thoughts and maybe we'll get it sooner than later!

It's Official!

It's officially official! (that's a fun sentance!) I'm in training for a Marathon! My 25 week program starts this week! Woo Hoo! So far I'm 100% YAY! It's still not too late to join me! Go to www.saltlakerunningco.com to get the 25 week program I'm using! It's gonna be a BLAST!

Childrens Museum

We went to the Childrens Museum yesterday with Shane and Jill, and Rian and Katie. It was pretty fun! It was super crowded, but we survived. They were having a Sesame Street Exhibit that was pretty cute. They talked about bodies and how they work. There was a whole wall dedicated to how food travels in AND out of you body. That seemed to be the favorite part of the day...Poo. You'd push the button and it'd fart and you'd hear a flush then you'd see a log roll down through the tube. They thought that was pretty funny! Here are some pics!

Marshall an Dylan (aka kettle head) just standing there.

Sesame Stree!

Give me just one min. and your food will be all ready!

EVERYONE Poops!

Marsh, Dyl and Dev Drivin the Heli.

Ty, Marshall and Dev makin music, you can see Mike, Katie, Shane and Rian in the background!

Dylan, Devyn and Marshall playin with balls!

Dev and Marsh buildin!

All the kids driving the jeep!

Katie and Rian hangin out!

Go Daddy!

Hey babe, this one's for you! I used the Title 'Go Daddy' for 2 reasons! I'm proud of my 'Big Daddy' for getting his dream started! Mike's always had a dream of starting an online biz, and he's had some GREAT ideas of what to do with it. Well no more is he just contemplating what he wants to do...he's started!

He officially has his own website that's going to get out there in the big World Wide Web! Here is the link for you to check out!

http://www.obesitees.com/

Good job hot stuff! I'm so proud of you! Thanks for helping make my world go around a lot smoother! Love you! xoxo

In Training!

Ok eveyone...I'm officially training for a Marathon! Here's my 25 week plan so you can feel free to train along with me! :-D http://www.saltlakerunningco.com/assets/25week2008web.htm

Here is the link to the Marathon I'm going to run! http://www.saltlakerunningco.com/event536.htm

I'm super excited! I've always wanted to run a Marathon just to say that I have. I'm not a huge fan of running in general, but what an accomplishment it will be to say I did it!

Last night at I had dinner at the Petersons house and my family was telling me all these negative things about training for a marathon. I went away feeling like they didn't think I could do it. But today I stopped by and said "Hi" to Rick and Carol and Carol told me about her experience running a Marathon when she was 30. She said it was actually pretty easily do-able.

Carol said that as long as you have a program to stick to, it makes it a ton easier and a buddy to do it with helps out big time too! Wade is the only brave soul so far to agree to doing one with me! I'm hoping to bring on a couple more people so we can alternate workout days with each other.

Carol also said that she did it right after she had Kaite, and so I'm in better shape than she was and I'm younger. She says that I can totally do it! So I came home feeling pumped and ready to get my training on!

The training program I'm following is a 25 week program. I actually have 30 weeks. So I'm taking the first 4-5 weeks to get into training mode. Like I said...I'm not a runner so I gotta start with baby steps. I ran for 15 min yesterday. I was on the treadmill for a total of 30 so I had a nice long warm up and a nice soothing cool down period. Today was my Cross Training day! So I did 30 min on the Ellyptical alternating between high and low intensity and I did upper body strength training and core!

This is going to give me something to shoot for other than to just lose weight for our Biggest Looser Comepetition with my family!

Wish me Luck....or better yet, join me!

Human Rights!

After re-reading that last post...I wanted to mention how proud I am of "We the People"! As far as the candidates go...I am very, very proud at how far we've come as a country. Human Rights have come a long long way! Where the two candidates are 1-Female and 2-Black! Who would have thought this could have happened even 10 years ago?

Go "We the People"!

Peace!

Ranting, and Raving, Politics!

K, this one's for you Brookie! I honestly don't read much on what's going on politically in the world. My knowlege of politics is directly from ranting and raving e-mails sent to me by authors like Robin Williams and Jay Leno and such...all of which are pretty fabricated I'm sure. Still...given my little actual knowlege I do have some opinions!

I'm SCARED TO DEATH to see where the world is going with the lears we have to choose from. I believe that not one of the runners for office have the right frame of mind. I believe that they want to be Pres. for all the wrong reasons. I hate campaings. No one ever tells the truth. Didn't you learn this from Jr. High and High School elections when the would be Presidents swore they would get us longer lunches, better vending machines, and music in between classes? Seriously...they're just pumping themselves up.

I also believe that if they had the right frame of mind they would want to come together and solve the issues as best as they can. Haven't they ever heard the phrase "Two heads are better than one?" With that being said...Why don't all the canidates get together and talk about the things they like/dislike abour the country and what they think could be done to better it and then do it and not fight to live in the big White House with all it's perks.

Hilary Clinton. I don't even know what to say about her so I won't. Honestly...nothing comes to mind. Orak Obama (sp?) lets just think for a min what his religion tells him to do...Honest and true to AFRICA. Not the US of A. Some would argue that I can't discriminate based on his religion or his beliefs or that the above statement is more on his heritage than his politital views. What I say is...what if we were to come upon something in the future and he has to choose? USA or Africa that his religion and his heritage are true to. Will he defend us against them or will he choose his heritage/religion? What would you do? Laws of the Land or Laws of the Lord? Makes it a lil scarey don't ya think?

Like I said at the beginning though...I really don't know much. These are my opinions of what I have read, and I'm not even admiting that they are truth. But what is truth in Politics? So there ya go! I hope you enjoyed my ignorant rants and raves! :-)

PEACE!

Week 4 Results

Ok, so another week of just so so commitment. The pounds continue to stay stubborn. I haven't lost anything since the first week. :o( BUT...I have lost another inch around the waist! YAY! So apparently I need to amp up the work out regimen and be a lil more strict on my eating habits.

I forgot to mention a few things about Dev's party. I did eat cake and ice cream. BUT...I made healthy cake and ice cream. For the cake I used Devil's Food Cake Mix and used Diet Coke instead of oil and eggs. For the frosting I used Fat Free Cream Cheese, Sugar Free Cool Whip, and Splenda Sugar. :-) For Ice cream I used Evaporated Milk, Fat/Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding, and Skim Milk. I wasn't a huge fan of Ice Cream. My mom really like it though! I didn't even save the left overs either. I threw it all away so I wouldn't be tempted with it for the next couple of days!

I took Dev's Dora 4-Wheeler Downstairs so she could start riding it and while the girls were runnin around I pulled out my old Rebounder! For those of you who don't know what that is...it's a small trampoline. I forgot how much fun that thing was! I got certified to teach Rebounding at Hill Air Force Base right after Dylan was born. It was a blast! I miss teaching. But pulling it out was a blast from the past for sure! The girls had a heyday with it too!

My baby's 2!!!!

Yesterday we had Devyn's party! It was way fun! We had potatoe bar and lots of fun with family! Thanks to everyone who came and all the cute clothes you got that Devyn threw out of her way to get to the toys! :-) You guys are so good to us!

Shane, Jill and Marshal brought Devs first present, a Birthday Crown, Sash, Earings and Wand that she wore ALL NIGHT LONG! I was shocked! She was so proud to wear them and she looks soooo big I can't believe it!

Here are some pics of the nights festivities!

My In-Laws are cooler than yours!

Dev trying out her new 4-wheeler!

Katie and Dylan!

Dev and Marshal in her new tent!

Call me Tom Sawyer!

Dev in her Bday crown and Dyl in her Princess dress and crown!

Happy 2nd Bday Dev! What a big girl!

Proud Mama!

Mmmmm, that's good cake!

Grandma Gretch!

Week 3 Stats!

Ok, so it's Week 3 in Biggest Loser Contest and I'm not winning...yet. I haven't lost any weight this week, same as last, but I aslo haven't gained any this week either. So...I'm maintaining which is better than nothing! Good news is....drum roll pleas......I've lost yet another inch around my waist! Woo Hooo!

I didn't do too hot with my workouts this last week. I danced with the girls and played on those fun balls with them a couple times last week and counted that as my work out cuz it is a work out! Then I counted work as my walking since I average at least 15,000 steps a night at work (I know cuz I have a pedometer :-) I haven't done any strength training or yoga this last week though and that's killed me I'm sure!

This week will be better. I don't work as much this week so I'll have more time/energy for strength and yoga! Wish me Luck!

What do YOU want to be?

This is the Snow Princess that Dylan and I made! :-)

This morning Dylan asked me what I want to be when I grow up! How cute is that? I'm glad that she thinks I'm not a grown up and that she thinks I still have time to do what I want with my life!





Just this last week she's added yet another thing to her list of occupations. For the last year she's always said that she wants to be an Artist, Doctor and a Mermaid. For some reason she thinks she wants to be an Astronaut also. So her list grows!





When she told me the news I asked her about being a Mom and she just looked at me like I was stupid, "Well ya mom, I'm gonna have 2 sisters and 1 brother, but I'm still gonna be an Artist, Doctor, Mermaid and Astronaut." Silly me for asking!





Along with asking me what I wanted to be when I grew up she asked Mike if he wanted to be a Lion Tamer. :-) That's a little joke between Mike and I and she must of picked up on it because she asked him about it in all seriousness.





It blows me away that she's so perceptive at age 4. Some things that she remembers, I had forgotten already. She remembers things from when she was 2 and 3 that just flabbergast me! She still amazes me everday with all the things she's learned already in her short life!

Hey Ya'll

Hey there! It's been a while since I've updated, yet again, I know! This week has been super crazy! Along with working Mon, Tues, Wed, Fri and Sat, my mom was in town! So the days were spent hanging out with her and my sister and sis-in-law and kids, going to lunch and movies. Needless to say I didn't get much done around the house. But I made a lot of money this week too! YAY!

I freakin LOVE my job! I feel stupid saying that cuz I'm a lowely bar maid/waitress, but I love it! I meet some of the coolest people and hang out with people that LOVE and appreciate me! It's so fun to go and be just 'Jennie' not MOOOOOMMMMMM!!! People ask me 'Please?' and they say 'Thank You', it's totally mind boggling to me sometimes.

I finally finshed my book The Pillars of the Eart by Ken Follett. What a good book! It makes me greatful that I live now and not back in the 1100's. Not only because of the modern conviences, but because of the injustice of the unknown. I'm not sure how to explain it so it kinda sounds dumb, but either way, I'm glad! In another way I envy the fact that your success was determined on how hard you worked and you values as a person, not just your title and what company you work for.

Now I'm looking for new books to read. Any ideas? I do have a list a mile long, but I'm not feeling them for some reason.

As far as the whole 'healthy' thing goes...ummm, no so much to report that's good. With Grandma Gretch being in town...we've been out to eat multiple times and I have a REALLY hard time ordering super healthy foods. Sometimes I make better choices between two options, but it's really just the lesser evil that wins.

It's a good think that being healthy is a long-term thing that always needs readjusting. If it wasn't I'd definately feel like a failure. I know that I've got more time and sometimes I use that as a crutch to lean on and justify eating the bag of Rolo's at the movie theater though. I've got to find a middle ground and be a little more firm in my resolutions. Like desert/treat everyother day or soda every other day instead of saying...'Hey I did good today I deserve a treat' it should be 'Hey I did good today AND yesterday, I deserve a small treat'! Maybe I need to sit down and redefine my goals for healthy living for when I'm eating out so next time I don't give in to free reign on my tastebuds!

This one's for u Wade!

Pics of Hardware Ranch
Here's the one with the broken skull!

These are the Horses and Sleigh that take you out there!
Dylan and Tyren

Well the other night Wade told me my blog sucked :-( Since I'm still learning exactly what I'm supposed to do...I'm not sure what I can do to make it better. He said I just need to update it more often. So...here ya go Wade, a new update for you!



Yesterday we went to Hardware Ranch with Mike's fam (except Wade cuz he's too good for us!) It was pretty interesting. Other than the fact that it took at least an hour to get there. Once we got there, the whole thing only took like 30 min TOPS! So it kinda seemed a waste that way.



Well, anyway, Hardware Ranch is this place up a canyon in Logan that feeds Elk every winter. These Elk are wild, they just come for the food! You can buy a ticket and go on a sleigh ride through the middle of all of them and they tell ya cool things about them.



One thing I learned is that they have an ivory tooth...weird. No one knows why either...odd! There were about 500 there, this one had it's skull busted and it's antlers were sticking up opposite directions, one straight up and the othere straight down.



After that we drove back to Ogden for some Dinner at Jedediah's or was it Jebediah's? I don't remembmer, but the food was pretty good!







Oh...and I really sucked it up on my whole "eathing healthy" this weekend! Having dinner with the fam and then going to Del Taco after Green Street the other night...not too happy with it! Oh well...back on today and I need to go shopping.



Speaking of Green Street, it was fun! We went with a whole bunch of people from my work to celebrate Alisa getting out of jail (she was in for driving on a suspended license and not paying some fines :-( ) Carson brought his own flask, Mike and Wade were challenged to a Punching Game and Mike won, and I kept getting hit on by these 3 Mexicans, even after telling them no and pointing to Mike and saying "he's my husband"!



I guess some radndom guys came up and asked if they wanted to go play the punching game and Mike and Wade thought that they wanted to fight but said "ok" anyway then they realized that it was an actual game where you go and punch a bag and it gives you points for how hard you hit it!



Afterwards we went to Wades house and played Guitar Hero...which is WAY fun by the way! I didn't do too bad (for my first time ever) and Mike thought I sucked so he picked it up and got boo'd off the stage! Krystal wouldn't even try it!

What a Week!

Well...this has been quite the week. I've been a little off and on with my eating. I figure I can splurge everyonce in a while, but this week seems like I've gone off course almost entirely. It all started with Cookies at Deijas. And if you've ever had Deijas cookies....you KNOW how imposible it'd be to say no to those. But I only had 1 and the rest of Devs. :-) Since then I've been out to Robintino's and I couldn't resist their delicious garlic bread.

All in all I've been great with working out. I've never had a problem with motivation for exercising, luckily. I LOVE IT! I know some people think I'm crazy because of it, but I really really enjoy the feeling of moving my body to music, weather it be the steady flow of yoga, or an upbeat kickboxing class to lifing weights. That mind-body connection is so soothing to me.

I think the fact that I've read up a TON on how our bodies work and respond to exercise makes me giddy with the feeling that I'm making my muscles stronger and longer, that I'm building up my endurance of my heart and lungs and releasing all those good-for-you hormones. I just bask in it!

Sooo...since fitness and health is something I've always loved, why not do something with that? My delima is what? What do I do with it? I want to do it all eventually. I want to own a gym, if not multiple eventually. I guess my real question is where do I start? Do I start with my Personal Trainer Certification, my Primary Group Exercise Certification, or Yoga?

The certification class that's closest at hand is Yoga! It's actually the weekend of my birthday
:-) so I'm hoping I can get a present out of it. It's $300 some odd dollars then I'd have to put in 8 hours of community teaching before I could teach at a gym. Then once my foot is inside that way it'll open up doors for me to get my certifications in the other areas.

I just want to get out there and share the passion I have for fitness with others!

Weigh In!

Ok ok okay! Despite my crazy guilt trip, I did pretty good, no make that GREAT, this week! I lost 8 pounds! Woo Hoo! All from watching what I eat...complex carbs like whole grains, and snacking on fruit, veggies, and nuts instead of chips, cookies, and ice cream! YAY!

I'm also working out more steadily. I'm trying to do at least 30 min of light movement like walking, cleaning, playing with the girls, EVERY DAY! Luckily work counts since I'm always running like crazy back and forth from table to table to kitchen to table. 3 days a week I'm doing yoga and 3 days a week I'm doing strength training!

It's so fun to watch Dylan and Devyn do my workout videos with me. Espeically yoga! Watching them try to hit the pose and stay with it is hilarious. I have 2 videos of yoga for kids, and they LOVE IT! They're also eating healthier as a benifit from mom only having healthy food options. They snack on oranges and apples and string cheese instead of goldfish, cereal and candy. YAY for me again!

Big pat on the back for me! And the best thing is? I'm not depriving myself of things I love! How cool is that? Pretty darn cool!

Update on Resolutions

Today is Sunday Jan 6 and I've been great since my last post. I'm feeling more energetic and optimistic about my eating habits. I've been doing yoga steadily for the last year and a half, but now I've added in some strength training and I'm seeing my definition in my arms come back.

I'm following the "YOU on a Diet" book. I love it cuz it's not about dieting...it's about making smarter choices and learning your hunger/fullness signals. I'm a BIG TIME emotional eater. So I'm picking up water, fruits, or nuts instead of ice cream, popcorn, and chips.

I haven't come up with a good system for rewarding myself yet...I'm afraid if I eat a piece of chocolate I'll eat the whole box. I know that before long I'm gonna hafta figure something out so I don't feel like I'm missing out.

I was telling Mike about my inner dialoge thinking I might be somewhat crazy...but according to him everyone does that. It's kinda like our angel and devil on our shoulders. I gotta learn to lay off myself a bit more though...Hey, I'm only human right? At least I hope so :-)

Resolutions!

Ok, so it's 4 days in the new year and I've already messed up! Yesterday Mike had the day off so we were gone ALL DAY LONG!! To Costco, Toys'R'Us, Wild Oats etc. Since we weren't homne that meant eating out...yikes for my dieting....yum for my tummy.

For lunch we went to China Star and really the only thing they had that was semi healthy were Chicken Wraps. I made sure they didn't use MSG, but they didn't have low sodium soy sauce...I didn't dip, but the chicken came coated in sauce already and the lettuce...well it was iceberg (no nutritional value at all) But...better than nothing.

After all our errand were done we went to see the movie Enchanted (so cute!) but this means popcorn and sodas right? I prepared for this by taking a lil baggie of dried cranberries a pear and a bottle of water. No good, it didn't help with the smell of butter and salt and the os so fun feeling of crunch crunch in my mouth...I had a couple handfuls. Scratch that, I finished Dylan's lil box full :-( Since my water was all gone I had a sip or 2 (ok a couple of gulps) of Mike's Diet Coke and then...DUN DUN DUNNNN Guilt becomes me!

Here I am on day 3 and I've failed, what a war going on inside my head. It's ok Jennie, just be better the rest of the day, it's ok....no it's not, you know how many calories and sodium and fat are in that popcorn, I'm gonna hafta run 10 miles to work that off...no you're over exagerating...just play with the girls a little harder tomorrow and everything will be fine...no, screw it, I've already messed up, lets go get some ice cream...no, we're going to be good the rest of the day, just because I messed up once doesn't mean I have to throw in the towel, hey I'm only human give me a break...no way, you screwed up...it's the end for you, you'll never loose that last 15, just give up and enjoy your food and be happy with who you are....I am happy with who I am but I want to improve my healt is all....UGH!

I'd made up my mind that I'm ok, I can forgive myself the handfulls of popcorn and gulps of diet coke and make up my mind to just be better the rest of the day....until we go to Firehouse Pizza aaaaaaaaaaaaaa! It starts again, but I resolve to just get a salad and stick to it...but Mike and Edyie order a Canadian Bacon 1/2 combination pizza, so I forgoe the salad and eat the pizza and vow to start over again tomorrow!

So here I am...tomorrow...and I'm doing great! Now I just gotta stay strong through work tonight...no snacking on french fries or eating my salad drenched in the ever delicious Blue Cheese Dressing. Nope...instead I'm going to eat a delecious side of veggies and a yam with cinamon and drink lots and lots of water! YAY!!

LAST DAY!

Alright everyone...Today is THE Last Day I treat my body like it doesn't matter. Starting 2008, I'm gonna be Great! Yay! I'm heading out to the Library to pick up some books on eating healthy...although I already know how...it'll be nice to figure out some quick and easy things to make for me and the girls when we're snacky...and make up a meal plan.

I really would like to go organic...the supply is just soo limited here in Davis County, I'd have to run into SLC to Wild Oats to be able to get the full option of healthy food! That Might have to be a choice I make to help my body stay healthy and strong...especially for my girls, their little bodies are so sensitive to all these preservatives and strange chemicals that are in their food.

I'm gonna simplify. That seems to make sense to me. Wish me Luck! Hope you make your 2008 Great! YAY!! :-D