Father's Day Weekend

It is often rare that Daddy gets a day off over the weekend. Whether it be on renovations or band rehearsals Daddy is usually booked up at least one day of the weekend (if not both). This weekend however brought rain to our area which meant he couldn't do his regular work and there were no rehearsals this weekend which meant we had Daddy all to ourselves.

We had a fun filled weekend that included, video games, long walks at the park, river drives, supper at Boston Pizza with my Dad and many other little things that we just plainly enjoy doing.

I also got made Daddy the perfect gift. It started with a pin on pinterest (like so many of my great ideas do). It was super easy.

It was a MAN BOUQUET!!!!!

If you search in pinterest or on mother google for the term "man bouquet" you will find a plethora of pix and blog posts on these so I won't take any credit for the idea. Nor do I know where the idea originated to give credit where it is due. Nevertheless it was simple to make and in many way practical yet still fun.

To start you will need: tape, a package or skewers, and some scissors. You will also need a small sized flower pot or planter, some fake greenery, and a piece of foam. Then the fun part is picking out the fun stuff you are going to put into your man bouquet.




Step 1: Put foam in planter
Step 2: Put greenery in planter over foam
Step 3: Tape your items to the skewers
Step 4: Stick skewers in the foam
Step 5: Say Voila! and present it to your man, and prepare for him to be wowed!













I had a lot of fun picking out the things for Daddy. There were the obvious choices like a few of his favourite treats...

...and a few little mini bottles...

...I thought I had a pretty good idea to put a couple of lotto tickets in (one even won $20!!)...

...and Daddy likes these mini cigars as a rare treat..

...Lastly the BEST PART was the stuff I got from the music store...

Daddy loved his gift and I think I should do it every Father's Day. Make it a thing. Change it up a little every year. It's like a Christmas stocking in June, how awesome is THAT!

Weigh In Day (Shred Style)

Every Friday I weigh myself as soon as I get up. I then inform the record keeper of our biggest loser group who adds it to the spreadsheet. If I had a good week I anxiously await to see where I am in the rankings. I love the accountability the biggest loser group gives me. Since I don't formally attend Weight Watchers meetings the camaraderie among the losers is invaluable to me.

This week I did well. Very well actually. It is a loss that I have been working on for the last few weeks...

About 3 weeks ago I began to do the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred and the Jillian Michaels Shred It with Weights DVDs. The last month (and 10 lobs) prior to starting I was having difficulty breaking through both a physical and mental (aka becoming complacent) plateau. Up a bit, down a bit, repeat. I often have slips but this was different. Adding regular exercise was the obvious no brainer.

I must admit I felt some frustration while exercising because while my diet was still pretty much trudging alone as per normal I wasn't noticing much difference on the scale. BUT after a bit of time something started to happen. I started noticing the difference in my body. I began to see the muscles forming. Things are feeling tighter, feeling stronger. I dare say I am even getting addicted to my morning work out. I have only had a few days in the past 3 weeks where I haven't run through a video and on those days I walked, A LOT. Actually on many days where I do Shred we have a big family walk as well (like last night for example). It's the endorphin high man.

Since I mentioned it I do also want to expand on the Jillian Michaels workout DVDs. First off, she kicks your behind. In a major way. The workouts are quick though. About 25-30 minutes including the warmup and cool down. There are modified moves for beginners and what is neat is that you work your way up through levels, such as three in the 30 Day Shred or two in the Shred It with Weights. A trademark of Michaels' is what she calls a 3-2-1 system. Three minutes of strength, two minutes of cardio, and one minute of abs. Two days ago I moved up to level three of the 30 Day and today I moved to level two of the Weights. I feel it. And it feels goooooooooooooooood.

I encourage anyone looking to start a regular workout to snatch up these DVDs. I also have Michaels' Ripped in 30 Days and Yoga Meltdown DVDs which I haven't started yet but will soon. I really suggest having more that one on hand because I really liked being able to add that variety between the days. Monotony and getting bored can kill your drive to exercise. Your muscles like the variety too and will thank you. Some days I like more focus on the weights and others I feel like cardio is more in order. Either way, I sweat, I make that fat cry.

So seriously dude, go, buy the DVDs. Feel awesome about yourself. They're short too. I am a mum of three with a lot on my plate. If I can fit in the exercise you can to. The boys are used to Mamma doing her workout and they for the most part entertain themselves and sometimes even join in (they love jumping jacks and pushups, go figure). It is vital I do the workout either before baby E wakes up for the day or during her nap. Working out with Evelyn in tow is like some ridiculous multi word oxymoron.

I don't want to ramble much more but I also wanted to say that for the last week and half I have also switched myself over the newest version of the Weight Watchers program. I needed to. I was getting bored and having too many slips. I needed something that required my attention again. Plus I was intrigued by the idea of 0 point fruit. I am very much enjoying my post workout smoothie. HOLD THE  PHONE...did I just say "post workout smoothie". Some kind of planets must be aligning.

A few final thoughts: still drinking tea, lots, and water, lots. Two point fruit/yogurt smoothies are AWESOME. Soup is the ultimate diet lunch, so many veggies, and so few calories. Steel cut oats for breakfast rocks.

You want to know what made me really happy today? Seeing myself back under 190. 188.6 to be exact, which also means a 3.8 lb loss this week. I worked hard for it. I deserved that loss. I know I am still a ways from my goals but this past year (almost!) has been an incredible weight loss experience. I am keeping an image of a 2 piece swimsuit in my mind too (modified of course, I'm thinking shorts and a tankini type top, but still TWO PIECE).

A Whole Lotta Random

Good Day! And indeed it is a good day. While my thoughts have been abducted by some family drama as of recent and interrupting some blogging I also have many things going on. Busy doesn't begin.

I do have a fun project coming up that I am really looking forward to blogging about. It involves nature, 52 weeks, and 4 seasons. All will be revealed shortly (as in only several more days until the summer solstice shortly).

There are a few things I promised to blog about in the past that I just wasn't able to get to it. Some of those things now even seem redundant or irrelevent to post on now (Easter anyone?). Some of those things, like the Brtiax B Ready stroller are still very deserving of a post and still pending. I hope to get rolling on some of those very soon. I'm thinking some videos demos and reviews are also in order.

So here is a short update:

Things were quite busy around home the last few weeks. For one, Daddy was away for 9 days on a renovation job out of town. Yup, just me, three kidlets, the dog and the cat in our small abode. It had some ups and downs but we felt is was a great experience. It was also great practice for those times when Daddy has to go away to rock and we stay home. We had some great routines and patterns and I gained A LOT of confidence in myself. Dare I say I look forward to a few more occasions where I can dig in my heels and be both parents (but not in a long term sort of way). There is a definite dynamic shift when Daddy is gone and in short doses I like it. Don't get me wrong though. WE MISSED DADDY SOOOOOO MUCH!!!!

A big development around here is Max is potty trained. Max is what I would figure to be a later potty trainer. He is almost 3 1/2 and we didn't give it a good go until the last few weeks and I ran out of pull ups and refused to buy more. There have been many pee accidents and many poo accidents but we are currently hitting 80% success right now. I'm pretty trained myself now to watch the clock and every 3 to 4 hours get him to the potty. This past week though he has taken some initiative to go on his own, only had a few dribble accidents, wakes dry every morning, returns home from outings dry and has even had some pees out and about.

Other than that it is pretty much business as usual. Daddy is back from out of town and back to regular band rehearsals and long hard work days. While he is busy working I am busy taking care of the home front and every single thing that implies (finances, homeschool, kids, cleaning, cooking......). I did happen upon a very intriguing blog while Daddy was away which I have to admit gave me some great insight into the splitting of responsibilities we do have. Take a moment and pop over to http://womenlivingwell.org/. If you have a penchant for the 1950 husband/wife dynamic, like to homeschool and love the Lord then you will love this blog.

On the band front...they had their video footage shooting almost a month ago now and hopefully in a few weeks the video will be ready and be sent to the booking agencies (I am crossing EVERYTHING!). I am using every piece of The Secret I know to make this happen. That band does their part and I do mine. We are dreaming every day (and night) about international travel, flying with the kids, exposing our to the world, new tastes and new sounds.

Well there it is for now. Sorry for the shwack load of random thoughts. I just wanted to quickly write something out. Make sure people don't think I have forgotten them. In fact I guiltily think about how I should write more ALL THE TIME! I even have lots of good ideas. Getting the time? That is the ticket.

Thanks for stopping in today. Have a happy day :)