Sunday, March 30, 2014

3 weeks ago...

So, three weeks ago tomorrow, I changed my computer wall paper to this.
I had just finished my first 21 Day Fix, had great results and was heading into round two.
Well, here I am, 21 days later...null.
I didn't eat terrible, not even really bad, but I didn't focus like you have to on The Fix.
So, tomorrow me and a couple of friends are starting it again.
It helps to have a group doing it at the same time as you...accountability.


We got our first Bountiful Basket two weeks ago, this is it, and we just picked up our second one Friday night.
I LOVE this. 
Living in a rural area, you might not always have access to the freshest or biggest variety of fresh fruits and veggies, but Bountiful Baskets gives you just that.


We transformed our old file room at the office into an exercise room.
We just got our equipment a couple of weeks ago. 
This is awesome!!!
I get off of work about 30 minutes before John Wayne, so the perfect time to get 30 minutes of cardio in.
I still get up at 5AM and do my workout at home, I'm still doing the 21 Day Fix regiment right now, and then add the additional cardio at night.


This weekend was the second race of Sweatovation's Commit To Be Fit 5k series.
I'm thrilled to report that I cut almost 4 minutes off of my time from January.
And I'm getting closer to my 10 minute miles goal.

I have never liked to run, but I'm kinda actually starting to like it.
I told the girls at the office the other day that as awful as this sounds, I think it's because my kids or the hubs can't just open a door and find me...ALONE TIME!

 

And finally, I found this the other day and it really rang true for me.
Lately, I've been catching myself telling myself, oh go ahead, I'll just do an extra 20 minutes on the treadmill.
Well folks, 20 extra minutes on the treadmill doesn't offset a half a bag of Cadbury Mini Eggs.
Darn those little things!


OK, I'll update you in 3 weeks with RESULTS!!!

These Crazy Kids

Hi friends!  It's been awhile, I know.  I get so caught up in Facebook and Instagram, but I know that some of you rely on the good old blog for your Tressie and Gunner fix, so here are a few of my recent favorites.

I love this pic of GW, simply because he still kinda looks like a baby.
Yep, holding onto any little moment of baby that I can.


Because trust me, there are a lot more of these moments now days!


Last weekend Tressie had the honor of escorting cousin Jeremy in the formal part of his Mr. Sand Creek competition.  We had such a fun night with the Jaquess crew and don't T and Jeremy just look adorable!


This Little Buckaroo LOVES the goats.  
These pics are after Gaga and Papa's goat sale this weekend.


And this is from tonight... 
Turn your back for five seconds and this happens!!!


Love every moment of this craziness!!!

Monday, March 10, 2014

21 Day Fix

This is a pretty long, detailed post.  If you hate hearing about people's diets and exercise programs, skip this one.  This post is for my friends out there who wanted to know a little more about what I've been doing...

So, I finally made up my mind that I'm tired of packing around all of this excess baby weight.
I'm done having babies, so why not suck it up and get rid of it.
Get rid of the fat clothes.
And get on with my life.

In October, I started exercising.
Consistently.
It felt great to be back in an exercise routine.
I started with Beachbody's T25.
Love, LoVe, LOVE this workout.
Twenty-five intense minutes, 5 days a week, in my living room.

So, I was working out, feeling great, but...still eating out.of.control.
So no surprise, but no real weight loss.

OK, fast forward to February, my Beachbody coach {yes, I have a coach and yes, she's awesome} started talking about a new program coming out called 21 Day Fix.
I started thinking, hey, maybe this is for me.
Then she added that she would be facilitating a competitive group.
Um, you got me.
That's just what I needed!

So, I signed up...and completed my first 21 days yesterday...

 

Not bad for three weeks, right?!
My goal was 10 pounds, but I pretty much fell off the wagon right in the middle of my 21 days and consumed large amounts of cake, cookies, ice cream and punch for three days straight.
Something about a special 4-year-old's Frozen party...
Oh well, no regrets, but I'm pretty confident that I would have reached my goal, had this not happened.

So, more about The Fix.
It's all about portion control.
The box arrives, I anxiously rip it open to find...the itty bitty containers.
My inner fat kid freaks out...I am going to starve to death.

You get over it and start planning and prepping your meals.
{This was key for me, to have a week's worth of menus planned out, shopped for and prepped in advance.}
Then you have your first day and you realize, oh my goodness, I was not hungry, once.
Sure, I wanted a candy bar at 3PM, but not because I was hungry, but because I like chocolate at 3PM.

Check out the containers:
Green = vegetables {3 a day}
Purple = fruit {2 a day}
Red = protein {4 a day}
Yellow = carbs {2 a day}
Blue = healthy fats/cheeses {1 a day}
Orange = seeds/oils {1 a day}
And then the shaker cup is for Shakeology

  

So, here's an example of a day on The Fix:

Breakfast:  Shakeology {Beachbody's super yummy meal shake} blended with water and frozen fruit
Honestly, I LOVE this stuff; when you do it in the blender, it's like a milkshake.
Strawberry Shakeology with frozen strawberries; Chocolate Shakeology with frozen cherries, and Chocolate Shakeology with a spoonful of peanut or almond butter and ice cubes, are my favorite combos.

Morning Snack: Carrots

Lunch:  Whole wheat tortilla, turkey, cheddar cheese and mustard wrap
Cucumbers

Afternoon Snack:  Apple with sunflower seeds

Dinner:  Steak, green beans and roasted sweet potatoes

 
 
The meals are real food, with endless possibilities.
Here are a couple of our favorite Fix meals...

Breakfast for dinner: whole grain waffle with mixed berries, scrambled eggs with salsa and turkey bacon {don't knock it 'til you've tried it}


Crockpot Chicken Fajitas with black beans
SO stinking simple and so yummy.
Frozen chicken breasts or tenders in bottom of crock pot, top with a bag of frozen tri-colored peppers and onions, cover with a half cup of salsa mixed with a packet of Mrs. Dash fajita seasoning.
I made mine the night before and put it in the fridge, so it only took between 3-4 hours on high {I don't remember for sure, John Wayne handled it for me while I was at work}.
Shredded it up and wallah, super yummy!


Fat Tuesday...you have to have jambalaya.
This was SO good!!!


You can have coffee on The Fix, but recently I've cut down my coffee anyways {because I load it up with calories}.
So, I've been having Advocare Spark after I workout in the morning and then green tea with honey when I get to the office {mostly because I want something hot to drink, not because I love the green tea}.
Other than that, I've probably drank more water in the past three weeks, than I have in the past three years, but it's amazing how good that's made me feel.
You know me, not a water fan, so mine always has either lemons and limes or a couple of frozen strawberries in it.


So, eating is only the half of it, then there's the exercise portion.
You exercise seven days a week for 30 minutes.
The exercises include several different weighted cardio sessions {killer, but SO awesome!}, an upper-focus day, a lower-focus day, pilates, yoga, abs.
And I'm happy to say that I actually really LOVE these workouts.

The trainer, Autumn Calabrese, is a competitive bikini model.
For reals, she is.
But you end up liking her, like wanting to be friends with her, not hating her.

Sooooooooooooooooooooooo, I can't believe I'm sharing these, because they're far from impressive, honestly, they're still a little scary, but here you are, my before/after pictures.

 

Obviously, I'm still not where I want to be.
That's why I started another 21 days today.
But I am pretty pumped with these results.
This is a very real life plan; there was cheating, there were skipped workouts, but it still worked!

After 21 days, sure I'm 8 pounds lighter and 11 inches smaller, but most importantly, I feel amazing.
My cravings are greatly reduced, I eat less and feel full faster and I "get" correct portions now.

Oh yeh, and the most awesome of all...
John Wayne did it with me.
He lost 11 pounds and 11 inches.
His caloric intake needs allowed for him to have one more fruit container and one more carb container each day. 
For that, I hated him!

If you want to know more, let me know and I'll hook you up with my coach!


Monday, March 3, 2014

This girl, turned four!

Miss Tressie Laine turned four on March 1st.
FOUR.
I can't believe that she's already four.


She does love a good party.
As do I ; )

 

I love my sweet little family!


The best Gaga and Papa ever!


I love my sweet girl so much.
She really is one of my best friends.
{Is it weird that one of my best friends is a four-year-old?!?}


Happy Birthday T-Ball!!!

Presents and Peeps

Tressie was really sweet when opening her presents.
She insisted the KK help her, and even tolerated her little brother helping her.
She was really gracious and thanked everyone after opening their gift.

 

This picture cracks me up.  REALLY checking her new moccasins out.

 

Pretty excited : )

 
 She asked for a helmet.
We splurged and bought her the bike too :)


"Happy Birthday to Tressie..."


Mmmmm, pretty tasty!

 

After cake, she performed a song for everyone.
#sostinkingcute



Her guest of honor and "boyfriend" KK.

 

Gunner and Jase -- the little brothers had a fun time together.

 

Sweet Baby Maddie :)



Thank you to everyone who helped us celebrate our sweet girl on her big day!


Frozen Party Details

So, I kinda put my "word" {simplify} aside for a few days to throw the Little Lady the Frozen party that she was dreaming of.  
But hey, I had fun planning it {and didn't lose too much sleep} and the Little Lady loved it.  
So, totally worth it!

Olaf welcomed guests at the front door.

 

The Little Lady wanted Gaga and Papa's house transformed into an ice castle.
{So yeh, I totally forgot to take a picture of all of the snowflakes hanging from the ceiling until we were almost done taking them down after the party.  Whoops.}

 

We had meat and cheese trays, along with other goodies, but this treat is my favorite: carrots and ranch dip.


I thought the "centerpiece" of the party turned out fun!

There were of course lots of sweets: cake, cupcakes, "ice cubes" {chocolate dipped marshmallows}, "snowflakes" {chocolate covered pretzels}, "ice wands" {chocolate dipped pretzel sticks} and "snowballs" {white crinkle cookies that Gaga made}.


The beverages were fun!


A long time ago, T asked for a pinata at her birthday party.
Fun for the kids.
Entertaining for the adults.


And finally, rock candy "ice sickles" as party favors.