Birthday Goal: EXCEEDED!

May 10th, 2016 my kids and I had just got home from a fun weekend with family at the Wisconsin Dells. It was fun, yet discouraging at the same time. I hated how I looked & felt in my swimsuit and decided it was FINALLY time to do something about it. I set a goal to lose 32lbs by the time I turned 32 which gave me 16 weeks. It was a lofty goal, but I was ready to make dramatic changes.

I’m excited to share that in less fourteen weeks (14!!) I crushed my goal! As of this morning I’m down 33.4lbs in that time and exactly 40lbs since 1/4/16! August 29th I turn 32 years old and I promise you, I’ll have increased that “lbs lost #” even more!

I decided today was a good day to join the weekly picture of my kids after church!

Time to set some more goals!

Real Life Everyday Kitchens

I'm sharing our kitchen today as part of Kelly's home tours. Make sure to hop on over to her blog to see all the other kitchens everyone has shared!

I have a love/hate relationship with our kitchen. In the 11 years we've been in our house we have quickly outgrown it and realized things we like and don't like (for our next house!). I dream of a walk in pantry, more counter & cabinet space, and huge center island (someday!). 

The first picture below is before we moved in and how our kitchen was the the first few years. 

Over the years we've removed wall paper, replaced the linoleum, re-faced the cabinets, installed new windows, tiled the backslash, and got a new dishwasher & microwave. And this is what it looks like today (except probably much messier!).  Oh and that old brown over you see on the left in the picture above, we spray painted it white so it doesn't stand out like a sore thumb, just didn't make the picture below. 

It definitely is not our dream kitchen, but it works for us right now! Most likely before we move in the next 3-5 years we will completely gut and re-do the whole kitchen. (We all know that kitchens and bathrooms sell houses!)

Thanks for stopping by!

Transformation Tuesday

12 weeks ago my kids & I got home from a fun, long weekend with family at the Wisconsin Dells...aka I spent 3 days in my swimsuit! I knew we were getting a family pool pass for the summer and I knew I didn't want to have that frumpy, ugh feeling I did that weekend in my swimsuit after each trip to the pool this summer. When we got home I started tracking my food on myfitnesspal and have been working out about 4 days a week. As a result I've lost 28.6 lbs in those 12 weeks! In total since the 1st of the year, I'm down 35.2lbs from the heaviest I've ever been (not being prego, obviously!).

Back in May I set a goal to lose 32lbs by the time I turn 32, which gave me 16 weeks to get that done. (32lbs from my weight at that  point in time, not my highest weight) I knew it'd be tough, but I wanted to set the bar high and really challenge myself. I wasn't happy with how I looked or felt and I needed to change that. I don't know how many times in the past 12 weeks I've said no to birthday cake and sweets. It was so many times and so out of the norm, Adelyn (she's 5!), asked why I don't eat cake anymore! When she said that it stopped me in my tracks! She and her brother are 2 of the biggest reasons I'm doing this and am more committed than ever. I need to set the example of a healthy lifestyle now. I don't want my kids to struggle with weight like I have. And just to note I will be eating birthday cake again...and I have had a few treats over these past 12 weeks, but I've said no more often than yes. It's all about balance and moderation!

The left picture is May 2016 and the picture on the right is August 2016 - 12 weeks and 28.6lbs difference!

Speaking of struggling with weight, those who know me know that ever since college, or so my weight has been like a roller coaster. I lost weight before my wedding, over our first 3 years of marriage gained about 40-50ish pounds and in 08-09 lost 50 pounds. I maintained until I got pregnant in 2010. I gained about 40 pounds when I was pregnant and lost it all by the time Adelyn turned 1 which is also when I got pregnant with Avery (July 2012)! I don't know the official number that I gained with Avery, but my pregnancy with him wasn't very healthy. Ever since he was born (March 2013) I've been struggling to get back to my "happy" weight. My little sister got married in August 2014 and I got down within about 12 pounds of that weight, but stress and the "busy-ness" of life crept in and within a year and a half I had gained 41 pounds! So add that up and you get 53 pounds. January 2016 I was FIFTY THREE pounds heavier than my lowest weight. 

This is me and my sisters (and chewbacca!) in December 2015 when we were in San Diego...I look 6 month pregnant! In fact, people were asking if I was, not to my face, but asking family members. How embarrassing! 

I never would have guessed that I'd be 3.4lbs away from my birthday goal at the BEGINNING of the month. How I see it right now, I have 2 choices, I could let off of the gas a bit and just coast into this month and, most likely, hit my goal. Or I could keep the intensity high, keep tracking ALL of my food, and hitting the gym & meet or even EXCEED my birthday goal. I don't think I need to tell you which option I'll be doing! ;) 

This picture is from this past Sunday - I'm 35.2lbs smaller than the previous picture and I'm healthier, stronger, and happier than ever before! It was Adelyn's idea to take a family picture and I'm so glad we did!

I still have a ways to go before I get back to my "happy" weight, but that's ok. I'm on the right track! Stay tuned!