Jan 17, 2011

I heart faces

Wow, I must be really busy lately! (ugh..if you only knew how true that statement was..) :) I have only had one post between the last I heart faces weekly challenge and this weeks. Oh well, such is life I suppose.

So here it is, this weeks challenge at I Heart Faces is "winter wonderland." I LOVE this picture I took of my sis on our shoot, almost as much as another one I took, but it didn't show her face....so I chose this one.  It definitely was wintery out there as we were going along. It was snowing pretty bad when we got started which made it slightly hard to focus, but I love how you can see the flakes all around them!





Make sure you head over there to se all the other amazing entries for Winter Wonderland!

Jan 12, 2011

Its a new year!!

yes, I know this post is a little late. Its only halfway through January though, so I figured I still have time to talk about my "resolutions" for this year. Although, to be completely honest...I dont do resolutions very well. Here is proof. (pardon the millions of exclamation points! hee hee. Also if my cousin Carrie reads that link I apologize for certain words used. I have since then become more mature. I love you) :)

But this year..only in the last 12 days, something has changed in me. I know this might sound a little strange but I feel different.  I feel stronger. And like in that humble apology, I feel like I have matured a lot since 2007, when trying to change myself was like trying to bring down a mountain.

I can't pin point the exact moment when I changed. I can remember though, one day during Christmas break feeling like I wasn't enough. I looked at my children and my husband and felt like I was failing them. I couldn't seem to get anything in my life together. My house was always a mess, I complained all the time about being stressed. I felt anxious about everything. I wasnt loving my husband or nurturing my children. I definitely wasn't growing spiritually in anyway. I was at a standstill. And I hated it. 

During General Conference this last October, Pres. Monson gave a talk about cultivating an attitude of gratitude. It was my favorite talk of the entire conference. There was something about what he said that struck me, spoke to my spirit...telling me I needed to change. I knew it was the truth, I just wasnt ready.

So here we are, a few months later and the beginning of this month I woke up one day and things were just different. I was ready and instead of giving excuses about why its so hard, or how I wont be able to do it, I just did it. I picked 4 areas of my life that needed changing and I made a mental goal to change them. They arent huge, frightening unattainable monsters that threaten to crush me at every step. They are quiet, simple everyday actions that are realistic and do-able.

Im so excited to share them with you. I think I will share one a day, since I like to talk and elaborate and we don't want this to get too long. (are you still reading this? good....) :)

My first goal focuses on the physical:

     *I knew I wanted to change my body physically. (no..not plastic surgery!) I didn't want to go on some extreme diet and starve myself. That never works..its a recipe for failure! I decided instead of worrying about loosing a ton of weight I just wanted to be healthy. If weight loss was a product of that, then even better! I think its easier to focus on small steps at a time..instead of stressing over big obstacles, like how many, many, many more pounds I have to go. :)

     *So, I committed my self to healthy eating choices. We got rid of all the junk food in our house and promised not to buy any more. Its hard, really hard! I LOVE sweet things.  We filled our cupboards instead with fruits, veggies and all kinds of yummy heathy options. I have set a realistic calorie consumption of 1500 everyday. Even though I eat healthy, every now and then I do get something small and yummy. I have a piece of candy or a bowl of my favorite sugary cereal. I measure it out and count it toward my calories. This helps me to feel like Im not deprived, but Im still being accountable and not going overboard.  I use Livestrong to keep track of it all, which is so easy and a HUGE help! You just type in what you have eaten and it automatically adds up your calories. You can also track how many calories you burn and tons more. There are other website that do this as well. My good friend is doing this too and she uses Loseit.com. Its so helpful to have someone to share the experience with. Also, the best part? They are free!

     *I also started to going to zumba classes at the Rec center at the university. Its dancing! And so fun, which also helps with motivation. No one wants to go workout doing something they hate! Plus, it burns over 500 calories in one hour and the time breezes by. I love it! I go 2-3 nights a week, after the kids are in bed with a few friends. Its only 3 dollars for me to go. Check out your local gyms and see if they offer any classes you might like. You don't have to commit to a huge monthly fee if they will let you just pay for individual sessions. That way you can see if you like it without emptying your bank accounts.  :)

I already feel so much better, not only physically but mentally as well. My mind is so much clearer and I have a lot more energy.

Tomorrow I will share with you the goals I have set for my house. Oh man, its going to be awesome!
So check back in and let me know some of your goals. Are you guys thinking about changing your lives as well? Like I said, its so much easier to do it with a friend. We can do it together!

Jan 10, 2011

I heart faces plus a sneak peek

This weeks theme at I Heart Faces is "smile". I thought it would be the perfect time to show off one of the pictures I took of my beautiful sister while we were visiting for Christmas.


Check out more beautiful smiles at I heart Faces!


Jan 9, 2011

Christmas break part deux

Christmas came and went so quick. It was nice to be able to just spend some down time with the family after it was all over. My brother, his wife and their kids even came up from utah (I didn''t even get one picture...lame) which was great. They used to own a home in cda and we miss hanging with them when we get into town. The Man has two sisters that still live in our area as well so they were around a lot as well. I got to snap a few cute pics of my little niece. She just turned one and probably weighs 10 pounds! (my kids are huge when they are babies...so you know, compared to that she is a little bird!)




We also got a lot of snow! So the kids, The Man, and me (begrudgingly) bundled up and headed out to hook the sled up to the 4 wheeler and ride around. It was sooooooo cold and the snow was pelting us in the face! We had to wear goggles and scarves to cover everything up! It was a lot of fun though.



We also built some amazing robots out of legos. The Boy did not want to take it apart for the whole trip. It sat on Grandmas fridge watching over us until we left.


We love visiting our family for the holidays and it will be hard for us when we leave. But for now, we are going to enjoy every moment we can while we are here. 

Jan 5, 2011

Here we go...

Oh my. I have so much to write about, but for some reason I have no motivation. Maybe its because I started cleaning apartments for the rental agency we rent our apartment from. I forgot how tiring working all day can be. I have been a totally spoiled stay at home mommy for a very long time! Working has been nice though, I will admit. Cleaning your own house is always dreadful, but there is something therapeutic about being alone for hours at a time, listening to music and scrubbing away for someone else. (no seriously....!) I have enjoyed it for the most part.

A few days ago we came back home after a two week break for Christmas. It was really nice. The Man and my parents both live in the same town, so thats always fun to be able to see everyone in one trip. It can be stressful trying to get in even amounts of time between the two and doing stuff together as our own little family, but I know I will miss it terribly when we leave for dental school.  I do look forward to starting our own traditions and coming closer together. Growing up I didnt see my grandparents very often and we always had holidays on our own, for the most part. Those are some of my best memories and hopefuly our kids will remember these times as well and look back on them with fondness.

Anywho...I promised you these post wouldn't be boing soooo..here we go.

Christmas:
So, The Man and I did our Christmas shopping so last minute! He was busy with finals and got really sick right before we left. I thought it was going to be a terrible experience going shopping with him ( its so much more fun on your own....so free to purchase whatever you want. ha ha!) but it ended up being really fun and I think he enjoyed it as well. Usually I do it all and he has no real knowledge of what I bought them ( surprise for everyone!) :) so it felt nice to come together and spent that time alone.

Christmas morning was really fun, since all of our kids are old enough to know whats going on. Baby Girl was so excited to open her presents and was "so happy!" and kept saying thank you. It was really sweet. I was horrible at the picture taking part, I mean..to the point that I am embarrassed to post them...but I will anyway for posterity's sake.












See what I mean? Horrible! But in my defense...it was really early! The biggest hits in gifts this year were:
Pillow Pets
Star wars anything
Zhu Zhu pets
Tiny rubber princess dolls and accessories

The kids had fun and loved every minute. I got some cute new boots and some awesome Lightroom presets from One Willow Studios.  It was really a great day.

Oh..I almost forgot this bad boy:



Oh yeah, thats how we do it around here! I think The Man had just as much fun with it as The Boy did...so much in fact he mentioned having to purchase one for himself so they could have a war or something. *sigh*  Boys. But I love them anyway. :)

Jan 1, 2011

Welcome back!

Wow~ what an awesome Christmas break! It felt like it flew by. Im excited to be back and have a TON of posts to make, so keep an eye out the next few days for some Amazing updates. :)


I promise they wont bore you to yawns! hee hee....