Well, after about a week and a half of running everyday, my body decided I'm working it too hard and it needed a break. I got a minor sprain in my left ankle that I kept running on, turning it into a major sprain that resulted in a doctor visit and a boot :( Per doctor's orders, I am out of commission for two long weeks. BUT, I have already lost 6 pounds, bringing me down to less than I weighed before pregnancy, so I am trying to continue to live a healthy life and eat well while resting my ankle. That's 30% of my first weight goal!!!
Jordan is still going strong, though, and is doing such a great job!! He has lost 9 pounds already!!! I am so proud of our progress so far and can't wait to get back on the treadmill myself!
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Now that we are a few days into our plan, we have gotten into a bit of a rhythm that works for us I made a structured schedule for Jordan to follow because that is how he works best; it's basically a coach on paper yelling at him what to do. I, on the other hand, actually enjoy running and don't mind being my own coach, so I don't have a set running schedule. In addition to running, I am also doing an arm workout so I don't fly away, which is scheduled (otherwise I would never do it). Since I enjoy running and how it makes me feel, the hardest part of this has been eating better. I want to eat ALL the sweets!!! We can't even drive to church without me seeing at least 15 restaurants that make me think of a dessert and go "oooOOOOooooo..." Here is our new purchase (or for Jordan, our new torture device 😂) in all it's black and gray glory. Lovely view, right? Add a tablet and Netflix, or a phone and Pandora, and you're good to go. Of course, my lovely helper is always standing by. Just try to not work out with those big judging eyes staring at you! Without further ado, here are our work out plans! Jordan's First 30 Days - This is just something I made up for him because he DETESTS running. He needed to go slow, but it had to be firm. He has really impressed me, though, by doing more running than the schedule requires. After the first 30 days, we will measure the running/walking goals by miles instead of minutes or songs. We mark through each day with a highlighter after he's done. For me, I do the 5 minute warm ups and cool downs, but everything in between is different. I run/jog for 1-2 minutes, then walk for about 2 minutes and repeat for 30 minutes. This will increase as I get stronger. The goal time for our workouts is 40 minutes, but I don't like having uneven mileage, so I usually go a few extra minutes to round it out. This is the arm workout I am using. I found it on Pinterest, but couldn't save the image, so I took screenshots and put them in a Word document. I added the table at the bottom for keeping track of the days. I fill in each box with a pink highlighter when I finish that day. Since we both want to keep track of our progress, I also made this chart. We keep all this on the wall next to the treadmill to keep organized and on track. Commence Week One post-workout selfie montage.... I was out all day on Saturday with a fever fluctuating between 101 and 103, and Sunday is my rest day. I was back in the saddle today and felt great. Remind me to put makeup on before all my workouts. (I only did this morning because K had an appointment with her pediatrician first thing this morning) As you can see, going to the doctor wore her out and she wasn't much help during my run today. That is OK by me! She was a real sweetie afterward though!! ❤️❤️❤️ Let me also just say.. Since cutting out cokes completely, neither of us had gotten any side cramps while running! Then we both had sweet tea with dinner last night and we BOTH got side cramps during our next run. Needless to say, we are GLADLY going to drinking only water!! (Except my morning coffee. I just can't cut that out.)
We have some momentum going now and we are both so excited for some change in our health, but I promise to not flood your Facebook feeds with fitness stuff. 'Cause no one really cares. But those who do, can come here! If you have known me for any good length of time, you know that I lost 40 pounds between the end of 2011 and the middle of 2012. Let me be clear... I did not just lose it, I worked hard and managed to get it off. I worked out constantly (often with the company of my sister-in-law while my brother was deployed overseas) and ate healthier, though my eating habits didn't really change too much. For the sake of being transparent and open, I will tell you I started at 175 pounds when I moved out of my parents' house. One hundred. Seventy. Five. I knew that wasn't okay. It wasn't good for my health, my self-esteem, or my slim college-student budget (new clothes are expensive!!). But it had never hit me quite as hard before. I knew I needed to change. I wanted to change, but I didn't. At one point before I moved out, my parents bribed me to be more active. They told me if I walked 100 miles in a month, they would buy me a new pair of shoes for $150. Um, OKAY! It's sad, but it worked. I walked and I walked and I walked some more. I got the 100 miles done and got my new shoes (some really beautiful cowboy boots), but did I lose any weight? No. I did feel better, but my body had not changed. So I went back to simply being upset with how I looked but not doing anything because... well, why? It's not going to help. Then I moved out of their house and into the dorm at the university I was going to. I was half the country away from my parents. I was on my own. That first semester in the dorm, I didn't work out much. I just walked everywhere I needed to go on campus and didn't eat very much (poor college kid, remember?). I didn't even own a scale. One day towards the end of the semester, though, I started thinking about my fitness again and went out to buy a scale. I had lost 10 pounds. What? 10 pounds?? I didn't know how that could be possible, but I was encouraged. I don't know what caused me to reconsider my health and activity level, but I did. Maybe it was because we had an amazing gym on campus. Maybe it was because I had seen progress without much effort. Maybe it was because I had a new boyfriend for the first time in 4 years (who is now my husband). Who knows. What matters is that I did. That is when I got intentional. I ended up moving out of the dorm after that semester and in with my brother and sister-in-law. I also got a job on campus. Both of those things helped my weight loss journey. My sister-in-law is an amazing cook and pretty great company during long 5+ mile walks around the neighborhood; in addition to walking with her, I went to the gym on campus after I got off work at 5, a lot of times with my awesome boss. Oh and water. I drank so. much. water. Then it happened. I reached the "40 pounds lost" mark. The scale clearly said 135. I couldn't believe it finally happened. I think that all sounds a bit like I rambled on for a while, but I say all that mainly for myself. To show myself that I've done it before and I can do it again. When Jordan and I got married, the typical, cliché thing happened. I gained weight (it started a few months before we tied the knot). 15 pounds, to be exact. I weighed 150 pounds when we found out we were having our first baby. At nine months and one day pregnant, I weighed 188 (sheesh!!) pounds. However, at just 4 months postpartum, I was back at 155, which is where I have been ever since. I am ready for a change. I actually have a section of clothes in my closet for when I lose weight or get pregnant again. Clothes that look good when I have a smaller mid-section or a pregnant mid-section (because it's socially acceptable for that kind of belly to show), but that I can't wear now because they cling to my weird post-baby stomach. I want to fit into my clothes. ALL of them. I want to be healthy for my daughter. I want to set a good example for her. I want her to live a long, happy, healthy life... one that includes her parents! So we are starting a new journey. Jordan and I both have our goals set and we are ready to go. As of tomorrow, we will have a new family member... Meet our new treadmill. (Thanks to Craigslist and funded by plasma donations 👍 💉) We get to pick up this beauty tomorrow evening and I could not be more excited!
As we get more organized with a specific plan and schedule, I'll post about those to keep us on track. If you tell everyone what you're doing and what your goal is, you kinda have to do it. So here we go! 💪💪💪 This post is not informative, inspirational, nor helpful in any way. It is simply to show off my beautiful, gorgeous new TABLE!!!! This is something hubby and I have been wanting/needing to do for a long time. Our old table was seriously the size of a desk. I got it at IKEA before Jordan and I got married. The whole set of four chairs and a table was $120. It worked at the time; I lived alone in a small one bedroom apartment. Then after we got married and bought a house, it still worked since it was just the two of us and our dining area was still relatively small. Now that we are in a bigger home and have a child, we need something larger and more practical (especially since two of the chairs broke, leaving us with two working chairs). We also want to be able to host get togethers with our friends from church, and our previous eating situation was not very guest friendly. As soon as I saw this farmhouse table from James + James, I knew it was the one. I love the classic look of the dark maple top and ivory base, and the farmhouse bench and x-back chairs compliment it perfectly! When hubby gave the OK to get it, I could NOT contain my excitement. I felt like this kid: And this girl: Then I found out it would be more than a month before I would receive this life-changing and spectacular table. So we waited. And waited. And then... IT CAME!!!! Here is our dining area before: And here it is NOW: Before: NOW: I am SO happy with the wonderful young men who delivered and set up the table. They were so friendly, polite, and professional. They were also very considerate of the fact that my daughter was already in bed and tried to be as quiet as possible. James + James exceeded all of my expectations and made the furniture buying process as pleasant of an experience as it could possibly be. They even killed a few wasps for me that made their way in the house while they were moving the table. This has been my favorite furniture purchase of all time. I am SO happy we decided to purchase from James + James instead of a chain store. Two thumbs up from me. 👍👍 I know it won't stay set so pretty all the time - with a baby, it's just not practical :( BUT I will make more of an effort to do it every once in a while, just for feel-goods. I have had this table for less than a day and I already can't imagine it being how it used to be anymore. If you need me, I'll be running around the house like this: And this:
Long time, no see!! After what seems like an eternity, I have finally finished my next project for you! After spending hours...er..uh..a little while on Pinterest, looking at home decor ideas, I kept seeing coffee tables that look like farmhouse tables. I love farmhouse tables. So much so that we ordered a farmhouse table from James + James that will be delivered next week (!!!!), so while I was seeing all these matching coffee tables in gorgeous living rooms of homes that I will never be able to afford, I felt my envy growing. Especially since my feet were propped on our $20 IKEA table. It isn't the worst coffee table we could have; it does serve it's purpose well and looks half decent. However, we are in the process of trying to make our home feel more like the home we really want (so we won't be mildly embarrassed to have company). Here is what I'm working with: See? Not terrible, but not really the look we are going for. Since the kitchen table we ordered has a white base, I figured I could build on what we have - we are all about saving $$ where we can! I measured the table and took my terrible, childlike drawing/diagram to Lowe's to get some lumber. I got three 1x4s my first trip (for less than $2 each, y'all 👍). I had seven pieces cut to 29" and two pieces cut to 24". I got home and sanded all the pieces, then laid them out how I wanted them on the table........ And THIS happened. 😡😤 27 ≠ 29. That's what happens when the old guy that normally runs the saw isn't there and there's a teenager in his place. That sentence made me feel old. BACK to Lowe's. Got another 1x4 cut to the correct 29", sanded it, and replaced the short piece. When it came to choosing a stain, I was overwhelmed by all the choices. I had picked out a pretty color and was about to accept it and walk away, when I saw this out of the corner of my eye. Our kitchen table top is being stained "Dark Walnut", so I just could not pass this up. The picture makes it look like a big can, but it's only 8 fl oz. This was about $5. I bought a package of foam paint brushes from Walmart in the craft section. A package of twenty 2" brushes for under 2 bucks? Yes, please. Instead of trying to clean the stain out of the brush after each coat, I could just toss it in the trash. No futile efforts to clean oil based stain out of a brush sounded good to me. Seriously. Have you tried to do that? It's evil. And pointless. I needed a big work surface that could be left there for a few days while the staining and sealing process happened. Since we use both sides of the garage for cars, that was not an option. I decided to use the kitchen "table" (it's actually about the size of a desk, hence the reason we ordered a new one). I covered it with a tarp and a towel to absorb any messes. Since only the edge pieces have a chance of being seen on both sides, I only stained the top, ends, and edges of the rest. Brush it on, let it sit for a few minutes, wipe it off. Easy peezy. No wood would be ready to become a coffee table without being properly sealed. This can of polyurethane was about $8 at Walmart. There was a smaller can, but I opted for this medium size because I plan to use it for other projects. There are other finishes like gloss and semigloss. I chose satin because that is the finish our table will be. That is totally up to you which one you want to use. I did two coats of this on the bottom because it should all be sealed, even if you won't see it (helloooo spills!). Make sure to let it dry and sand all over between each coat. I waited a full 24 hours to let it fully dry before flipping over all the pieces to seal the tops. Then I did three coats on the top. NOTE: Don't be like me and forget to check for drips of the poly. When I was doing the backs, I accidentally left some drips on the edges that pooled up underneath, leaving a thick, dark glob on the front. If this does happen to you, just take a razor blade and GENTLY scrap off the dried glob. Put a little stain on your finger and rub it on the spot if you scrape off a little too much. All that's left is to put it together! I was all ready to start drilling screws in when my brother-in-law suggested drilling holes first to keep the wood from splitting. Duuhhhh Casey. Thanks, Dillon! After texting multiple pictures to my dad of the different drill bits we have, I finally decided on this one. This is what took me so long to finish this project. After drilling about 6 of the 50 holes I needed, the drill battery died. Could I find the charger? Nope. Could hubby find the charger? Nope. Did we order a new one? You betcha. So after waiting a few days for the battery charger to arrive, I was FINALLY able to finish my beautiful new coffee table!! It isn't perfect, but I am pretty darn happy with it! While waiting for the polyurethane to dry and for the drill charger to arrive, I had some time to work on a couple other projects. This one used to be an old window frame. All the little pieces that held the panes of glass in place had fallen out, leaving just the three long pieces. I painted it a pretty turquoise blue and distressed it with some sandpaper. Add some eye hooks, jute twine, clothespins, and photos and it's good to go!! I love how this turned out! This next one is one that I have been wanting to do for a very long time. I have been dying to have a coffee bar. Well, a couple weeks ago, my wonderful and amazing husband bought me the perfect cabinet for it!! I was finally able to make the coffee and tea sign that's been in my head for so long. To do the letters, I printed off what I wanted it to say, placed the letters where I wanted, and traced over them with a ball point pen - HARD. That left an impression in the wood that I was able to use as a guide to paint. I still have a few signs I'd like to make to put above the coffee makers to give it some color in that gap between the shelves, but here it is!! I. LOVE. IT. Well, K's nap time is very apparently over, as evidenced by the pterodactyl-like screeching I hear coming from her room, so that's all for now! I will post a before and after of our eating area as soon as our gorgeous new table is delivered!!!
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AuthorMy name is Casey, I am a wife and mother, and I think you should always believe that something wonderful is about to happen. Archives
April 2017
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