No Soda - An Update

So, I'd thought I'd give an update on my "no soda drinking" excursion to my faithful readers (Bryan, D and Mom, that's you!).
Since December 20th the only regular soda that I've had was one small glass of Sprite at a friend's graduation party a few weekends back. Besides that it's been tea sweetened with artificial sweetener, diet coke (and only a few of these) and water.
I'm very happy that I've actually started to nip this habit in the bud. It's something that I've really struggled with since my early teen years. I'm a soda-holic!!
I've definitely noticed a major difference in my stomach size since I quit drinking regular sodas and limited consumption of diet sodas. All the carbonation was making me, well, bloated. And that is just no fun!

I'll update again, probably next month, and let you know how the trek is going.
Peace!

Long List of To-Do's....

Today is going to be a LONG of cleaning for me. This week was my first back to work since the holiday break, so Audrey and I have been thrown off kilter. Yesterday Audrey was SO fussy and wouldn't nap, and then she was fussy again last night. She also had a small bout of throw up. So, needless to say mommy has been off with keeping up with the house. So, since we're home all day today (and since I have a BUSY weekend ahead of me), today I'm playing catch up. Audrey actually hasn't even been out of bed today. She was awake playing in her crib for awhile this morning, but then she fell back asleep and is still asleep at 11:14am!! Poor baby, this is SO not like her, so I know she's in need of the extra rest.

What I've Done:
1. Laundry-
~I've completed several loads, now I have one load to fold, one load in the dryer and one load in the washer.
2. Unloaded dishwasher, reloaded and turned on.
3. Rinsed the left over dishes (to be loaded after current load is done).
4. Cleaned Audrey's highchair & tray.
5. Cleaned up main bathroom-
~picked up dirty clothes
~put toiletries back in proper spots
~toilet
~mirror
~sink and counter top
~emptied trash
6. Master bedroom-
~made bed
~emptied trashcan
~put dirty clothes in hamper
~put things back in proper spots
7. Audrey's room-
~changed sheet on changing pad
~changed sheet in crib
~put bedding into wash
~picked up toys and clothes
~emptied trash
8.Swept house.
9.Took out some trash.
10. Cleaned the kitchen counters.
11. Picked up miscellaneous stuff in the living room, dining room and kitchen.
And other little things here and there...

'Friends' Clip Friday

Things I Love Thursdays...

Okay, so I'm going to go back and forth between "Thankful Thursdays" and "Things I Love Thursdays".

I love catalogs! And it is really hard for me to get rid of them once they are in my possession. I could look through the same catalog 50 different times. I honestly think that Bryan thinks I'm crazy when I sit down on the couch to look through the latest 'Oriental Trading Co.' catalog. But what else can I say besides, I LOVE CATALOGS!!! Maybe I'm living vicariously through the catalogs. The other day I got a Pottery Barn Kids catalog in the mail and I was having such a blast looking through it, of course wanting to buy so much of it for Audrey. But I know that I can't afford PBK, so why do I do it to myself? Well, one can dream, right?! Here are some of the catalogs that I receive normally:
~Pottery Barn
~Pottery Barn Kids
~Crate and Barrel
~Ikea
~Anthropologie
~Room and Board
~Oriental Trading Co.

The Story of Stuff...

Check out this video. It's about 20 minutes long, but well worth watching.

'Friends' Clip Friday

Thankful Thursdays

I'm going to start (and hopefully keep up with) a new weekly post. I think we all need to take time a remember how much we have and how great life is!! So often I find myself griping about things or making it seem like life is so bad, but it isn't!! Life is wonderful!! Sure I've had my fair share of downers, but I have also been so, extremely blessed!! So here we go...



I thank God SOOOOO much for my wonderful husband and my beautiful daughter. These two make life worth living!! No one else in this world brings me as much joy as Bryan and Audrey. I love them more than life itself!!

So I'm Finally Doing It!!

I'm actually breaking my soda addiction. Tomorrow marks two weeks with NO sodas!! Well, except for one sip I took of Bryan's when I was choking. I have struggled with this "addiction" for a VERY long time now. And when I drink any sort of beverage I don't sip, I gulp. I'm a VERY thirsty person!! So I always order large drinks if they're available. And I could easily go through 2-3 cans/glasses of soda during a meal. VERY bad, I know. But I decided to kick this nasty habit! I don't want to be ensnared by it for the rest of my life. And I don't want Audrey to pick this up from me as she gets older either. One of my focuses this year (not resolution!) is to make small changes in my eating habits. I don't want to get into the habit of denying myself of having certain foods or drinks (Lord knows, if I deny myself I ended up giving in later with a vengeance), but I want to be healthier. For myself and my family. I know that one of the MAJOR side effects of changing my eating habits is weight loss (YAY!) which is good for me and my husband and even my daughter (in certain ways), but I want to be able to encourage my daughter (and any future children) to have a healthy lifestyle as they get older. I don't want them to have the same "issues" with food that I have. I want them to love food and enjoy it, but not obsess about it. I don't want them to have to struggle with their weight for years on end like I have. I want to instill in my daughter a healthy self esteem and I think, no, I KNOW, that starts with mommy having one. The old "Practice What You Preach" thing. I know that my insecurities are going to eventually rub off on her and I don't want that to happen.
So here's to healthier living in 2008!!!

Kinda Puts Things In Perspective....

Look at this article about weekly food expenditures in families around the world.

What category would you fall into???

Yes, I Know....

I've gone a little cake happy, but can I say WOW!!! about this site!!!

A Pink and Brown Birthday

One of the themes that I'm considering for Audrey's birthday is not really a "theme" at all, it's more of a color scheme. If you ask anyone I know, they will tell you that I love, love, love the color brown. My husband actually teases me about it, because it's really more of an obsession than a love!! So I'm considering throwing Audrey a pink and brown birthday party. I think this would end up being cheaper than an actual themed party too. Well, look at this cake I found. Isn't it adorable?!

Oh, by the way, I found this cake at Cakes By MaryAnn. Check it out if you get a chance. There are tons of awesome cakes on that site!!!

Awesome Cakes

So I'm now starting to think about my daughter's next birthday party. It's a little over three months away, but I like to be prepared and party planning is one of my favorite things to do. So I found myself googling different types of birthday cakes tonight. I have several different themes that I'm debating in my head right now. Anyways, one of the ideas that I had was a whimsical type theme, like Dr. Seuss or a Mad Hatter Tea Party. I remembered seeing some pretty cool cakes that had a "Mad Hatter" style. They are SO awesome. Of course, one of these would be a tad out of budget for a two year old's birthday, but one can dream, right?!

I also came across this one that is just so amazingly adorable!!! I love that they look like gigantic cupcakes!

I DID IT!!!!!!!!!

I FINALLY finished 'Anna Karenina'!! 819 pages GONE!! I absolutely loved this book, but I will admit to feeling bogged down during certain parts of it. I'd actually tried to read it once before a few years back. Get this, I got like 700 pages into it and put it down!! What was I thinking?! I highly recommend this book to anyone who is into classic literature. Now I'm reading the 3rd Harry Potter book (which I should actually be done with probably by tomorrow!), and then onto 'Animal Farm' and then 'The Brothers Kamarazov'. That last book is another 700-800 page book, so this will be my reading list for the next several weeks.

On a side note, I'm SO glad that I've gotten back into reading again! I went for a LONG time only reading pregnancy and baby/childcare books. But there is nothing like sitting down and getting completely lost in a good book. This is something that I definitely hope to instill in Audrey and our future children.

Are You a Lady?

You Are 60% Lady

You're part lady, part modern woman. Etiquette is important to you, but you brush aside rules that are outdated or silly.

Are You A Lady?

Yay! I've Been Tagged!!!

My husband, Bryan, has tagged me for a "What's in/on your:" meme. By the way, this is the first time I've EVER been tagged (is it sad that it's by my husband?!).

I want to know what's in/on your:

CD Player - I switch it out a lot, but probably Incubus, "Make Yourself".

DVD Player - A disc from season 9 of 'Friends', the BEST comedy EVER!!!

To Read List - 'Animal Farm', the rest of 'Anna Karenina', the rest of the 'Harry Potter' series.

To See List - 'I Am Legend'

Mind - "How do you keep a toddler occupied?!"

I tag anyone who reads this!!!

If You Want A Few Reasons To Stop Drinking Sodas....

Have you ever wondered why Coke comes with a smile? It’s because it gets you high. They took the cocaine out almost a hundred years ago. You know why? It was redundant.

• In The First 10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (100% of your recommended daily intake.) You don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor allowing you to keep it down.
• 20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (There’s plenty of that at this particular moment)
• 40 minutes: Caffeine absorption is complete. Your pupils dilate, your blood pressure rises, as a response your livers dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. The adenosine receptors in your brain are now blocked preventing drowsiness.
• 45 minutes: Your body ups your dopamine production stimulating the pleasure centers of your brain. This is physically the same way heroin works, by the way.
• >60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium and zinc in your lower intestine, providing a further boost in metabolism. This is compounded by high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners also increasing the urinary excretion of calcium.
• >60 Minutes: The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (It makes you have to pee.) It is now assured that you’ll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolyte and water.
• >60 minutes: As the rave inside of you dies down you’ll start to have a sugar crash. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You’ve also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like even having the ability to hydrate your system or build strong bones and teeth.

This will all be followed by a caffeine crash in the next few hours. (As little as two if you’re a smoker.) But, hey, have another Coke, it’ll make you feel better.

from healthbolt.net

Making Your Home A Haven - Day 6

Go over to Biblical Womanhood to view this and other challenges.

1. Refresh Your Spirit -

Begin your day with the Lord. Fix yourself a delicious hot drink and spend at least a few minutes praying, reading God's Word, and meditating on Scripture. Ask God to bless your day and love through you. Find your joy, hope and strength in Him.

So, I'm really liking this part of the challenge! It's amazing how much better my day goes when I start with even just a few minutes of prayer and reflection. This time helps keep my perspective throughout the day!!

2. Do Your Morning Routine -

1. Brush Teeth/Take Pill - DONE
2. Swish & Swipe - DONE
3. Make Bed - DONE
4. Unload Dishwasher - DONE
5. Start a Load of Laundry - DONE

This morning I was actually very proud of myself. Normally I get up at 6am and make Bryan his breakfast and then head back to bed leaving all the dirty dishes. Well, this morning I got up, made Bryan breakfast, unloaded the dishwasher, and then washed all the breakfast dishes and the ones left from last night before hitting the hay again!!! Progress not perfection!!

3. Take Time To Plan -

After your morning routine is finished, write out a short to-do for today (five items or less).

1. Unpack from weekend getaway. - DONE
2. Do all laundry/straighten laundry room. - DONE
3. Call about family portraits. - DONE
4. Wrap remaining presents. - DONE
5. Write out remaining Christmas lists.

Here is a breakdown of my laundry today. I did 5 loads (dog linens, whites, towels, lights, darks) and after the last load was dry I wiped down the washer and dryer, emptied the lint holder, shook out the rug and swept the floor. Now my laundry room is straightened and my laundry is washed, dried, and put away!!!

Oh, I also actually got in some exercise too! If you haven't tried it I recommend the 'Dancing With The Stars' workout dvd!! It's AWESOME! It has tons of high intensity cardio that makes you sweat buckets!! Now I just need to go do some toning exercises...

4. What's On The Menu For Dinner? -

Take a moment to plan what you'll be having for dinner and then do as much of the prep work as possible before noon. Fix up a pot of soup, throw something in the crock pot, whip up a casserole, or pull something out of the freezer.

I recommend that you have this dinner prep work as part of your morning routine or scheduled into your morning somewhere. Then you'll save yourself realizing that it's five o'clock and you haven't a clue what to fix!!

Tonight I'll be making spaghetti and meatsauce with Italian sausage and garlic bread. So I went ahead and pulled the ground beef and the sausage out of the freezer to thaw.

5. Project of the day -

Turn some uplifting music on, light some candles, put an apron on, roll up your sleeves and let's get busy!!

Set your timer for five minutes and start at your front door again and quickly walk through the main living areas of your house straightening and picking up and putting away anything that's out of place. When the timer beeps, you're done, so work fast and don't get distracted.

Then, go to your kitchen (you knew we'd get there soon, didn't you?) and wash, dry and put away any dirty dishes there are (or use the dishwasher) and then quickly straighten anything else that's out of place, wipe down your counters and cupboards and replace your dish towel.

Okay, so it took me more than 5 minutes, but I got the main areas of my house cleaned. After Audrey layed down for her nap I went ahead and got to work. The main "picking up" that I had to do was Audrey's toys and books that she had gotten out this morning. Since we were gone for the weekend and I straightened the house the night before we left there wasn't too much to do. I did dust and sweep the living room/office, hallway, dining room, and bathroom.

As far as the kitchen goes, I did a bunch of dishes early this morning so all I had left to do was mine and Audrey's breakfast dishes. Then I wiped down the counters and the appliances and then swept.

Diaper Cake!!!

Here is a picture of my VERY first diaper cake. My mom has done these before for both myself and for other people, and she gave me some supplies to try my hand at them. I think I did pretty good for my first time! What do you think?

Making Your Home A Haven Challenge - Days 1,2, & 3 - Step Three

Okay, here is the next and final step of the Making Your Home a Haven Challenge!!

Step Three - Do Something!!!

Day One- Each day I'm going to be giving you a simple organizational task to complete in your home. And today we're going to start at the very beginning--a very good place to start!

Put on an apron, light a candle, and turn on some uplifting music. Then go to your front door and pretend that you're a first time visitor to your home. Walk in and take a look around. What is your immediate impression of your home? Is it calm and clean or cluttered and chaotic? Take 5-15 minutes to clean, de-clutter and beautify your entry way. Do a quick pick up if there are items out of place, mop or vacuum the floor, shake the rug, spot clean the walls, and rearrange things.

My entryway goes into the whole main part of my house, living room/office and kitchen and dining room. So I'll need to do a major straightening of all these rooms. I don't think that I'll post "before" pictures because I feel like a tornado went through my whole house, but maybe I'll post some "after" pictures!!--Done cleaning!

Here is the "office" part of the living room. You can also see Audrey's room down the hall.


Here is the living room.


Here is the kitchen.


And here is the dining room. I put Audrey in her chair to color while I took pictures so she wouldn't mess up the house! All I have left to do now is push the dog pen back into the corner once the dog's linens are done (they're in the washer right now), and put up that shirt once it's finished drying.

Day Two- Since we tackled our entryways yesterday, we're moving onto our living rooms today. Light a candle, put on your apron, turn on some uplifting music, and then set the timer for ten minutes and get busy cleaning your living room. Start by throwing out trash, putting away misplaced items, and straightening up things. If you have time do a quick dust and vacuum of the room.

Well, this one is easy since it applies to yesterday's challenge for me!! The living room/office area are now clean except for some clean clothes on the couch that need to be folded and put away and the ironing board which needs to be put away (I'm waiting until after Audrey's nap is over for that as not to wake the little princess up!!).--ALL DONE!!!

Day Three- Today we're going to focus on the laundry and laundry room. Light a candle, put on your apron, turn on some uplifting music and get busy!

Your goal by the end of today is to have all your laundry finished, folded and put away. For those of you with a laundry room or laundry area, take some time to organize and clean up this area. Wipe down your washer and dryer, check for socks and other articles of clothing on the sides of and behind your washer and dryer, and clean out your dryer lint.

This is now done. Well, almost. I already wiped down the washer and dryer. I also shook out the rug in the room and swept the floor. As far as doing laundry goes I had a load in the dryer and a load in the washer this morning when I woke up, I also did a load of sheets. All three loads are now put away. Right now I have the dog's linens in the washer so I just need to dry those and put them back in the dog pen. YAY!!!

Making Your Home A Haven Challenge - Days 1,2, & 3 - Step Two

Okay, now on to Step Two of the Making Your Home a Haven Challenge!!

2. Take Time To Plan-

Day One- Today's planning project is centered on a morning routine. Write down five things you want to do in the same order every morning. Keep it simple and only stick to five things. If five things seems overwhelming, start with three. Starting somewhere is better than not starting at all.
We'll be keeping each other accountable for our morning routines over the next few weeks. Put your list in a very conspicuous place and consult it first thing each morning.

My Morning Routine: (italics are finished)
1. Brush Teeth/Take Pill
2. Swish & Swipe
3. Make Bed
4. Unload Dishwasher
5. Start a Load of Laundry (if needed)

I posted this by the door leading out of my bedroom.
And they are now done for the day!!

Day Two- Do you have a plan for today? A few minutes of strategic planning before you begin your day cannot only help you to be much more productive, but it can also save you a lot of time.
If you have not done so, make a short to-do list for today of things you need to do or would like to accomplish. Keep your list to ten items or less. Number the items in order of importance and tackle the first one. Don't move on to #2 on your list until #1 is completely finished.

My To-Do List: (italics are finished)
1. Wrap the rest of the presents on hand.
2. Clean living room.
3. Clean kitchen.
4. Clean dining room.
5. Wash the dog's linens.

Day Three- In addition to writing out a short to-do list, I encourage you to plan what you are having for dinner.

Dinner:
I put out some chicken leg quarters to thaw. Bryan's going to grill them tonight and I'm thinking about grilling some corn on the cob to go along with the chicken. YUM!!!

So, there you have Step Number Two. I'll update my to-do list as I complete things. And I'll be adding Step Three in a little while!