GREAT new running music

Happy happy girl here, dh got me this, so pumped up to go running with it!


Need I REALLY say more?

Whoaa! It is Friday!

OK lots to share! First off and most importantly - TODAY IS THE EMOTION BOWL! The big rivalry football game between SKYLINE HS GRIZZLIES and IF TIGERS HS here in town. This has been a huge huge rivalry for man years and the whole town goes a little nuts for the day (ok for the week). I am a true BLUE girl (Grizz) and am pumped up about the game! So fun!

Secondly, I have been scrapbooking! I have felt for a while like I was really missing my creative pastime but now I am really doing it! I did a 2 page layout the other day of Micheal playing at Thanksgiving and then last night I did another 2 page layout as well, of our family Christmas traditions! SO COOL!

I am VERY VERY on plan with my weight loss - I am going to reach this goal and I am so pumped up! VERY COOL!

Dani has an all day Choir Festival in Blackfoot today - jazzed up for her for that as she has a beautiful voice and loves choir. Go Dani!

Today is Ed's day off and prob mine too with the new job - still waiting for the uniform to come in. *sigh* But at least we get the day together!!

OK More later - GOOD LUCK GRIZZ - those goalposts SO will be painted BLUE tonight!

Darla

This is crazy!

After a few months "off" from my favoritest hobby of all time, I got some creative juices again and did a layout!! I really need to find a better balance between health/fitness and scrapping/paper hobbies. I love them both and am trying to figure out how to dedicate time to both... wish I was a better multi-tasker!
So,it is a super simple one, used a Becky Higgins sketch and then threw in some fun stickers to doll it up a bit - but I like it. Thanks to Robin for all her input and help! You rock! :O) I know it looks more like an Autum/Halloween page than a snow page but hey... it WAS Thanksgiving time AND the colors just worked! Here ya go - can you believe I scrapped!?!
Oh, and my scanner is not liking me so I had to take a pix and share that way, sorry!

Darla

Monday Runday

Well, it is another Monday - ahhhhhh - another new week, new days, new goals. :O) Mondays are good..... fresh start is always good, right?
Stayed home today, laundry and cleaning and all that fun stuff. I did manage some time to go for a run with my sister Lisa - it was a good one too! Hope to get enough on routine this week to get up to my 2 miles - I know I know, I keep saying that but I have to keep trying!

OK off to finish dinner!

Darla

Some things to share...

LOTS of photos - just a quick review of them ....

Keys to my sucess:
*My New Balance running shoes that are light as air and oh so comfy (can you believe how worn they are already????)
*My awesome MP3 player Sansa and arm band that keep me moving and awake
*My TRUE BLUE BABY Skyline HS hoodie sweatshirt that my sis bought me for my bday and keeps me cozy warm while running in the wee hours of 20 degree weather

Also..
*Cute little Tiffany who is going teenie-bopper girl on me - ON MY CELL PHONE!
*Jars of beautiful and yummy canned tomato - aren't they pretty? Mmmmmm
*Me in all my glory canning at our friends Blake and Lisa's house last weekend- aren't I a sight!? Hey, it was work!!
*Our youngest son Micheal(With SNOW in his FACE) and our friends son Berg jumping on the tramp out in the snow last weekend!

OK so my big news today is this - early this morning I woke up and got on the scales and could not believe my eyes - I am at my LOWEST WEIGHT EVER since I started my weight loss journey about 2 years ago! WHOO WHOO! Back in July I hit a low weight and I have been trying to get back down to it for 3 months! Today not only did I get there but I was down even 2 oz more! YES! Love it! Now I KNOW I can meet my goal by Thanksgiving! LOOK OUT- HERE I GO!

Darla

Hey

Not much to report today. Just hanging out at home enjoying a relaxing Sat with the family. Chris is working and Dani is babysitting and that is about it. Maybe I'll share some pix later - in the meantime, that is about it for me. :O)

Darla

Miss you Dad!

This is becoming a rough time of year - guess it all just sort of hit me this morning. Mom's birthday would have been last month, Dad's birthday woudl be this month and this is also the day that we lost Dad 12 years ago - you'd think after all that time things would get easier but you never miss them any less, just have more and more fond memories that surface. :O) So, here is to Dad today - thinkin' of him and missin' him more that he could ever know! XOXO

Darla

Photos are of Mom and Dad with my nephew Ted (he is in red overalls) and with my daughter Dani as a newborn... both taken over in Boise wayyyy back when!

Good Golly Miss Molly them there are some GREAT Jeans!

OK so I am on the quest for the best fitting jeans in the whole wide world. Not for now. For later. Well, not even wanting to buy them now. Not yet. But in the world of good weight loss - jeans are a big factor. Seriously! I have read many a great blog about women who have the ultimate "goal" of a cerain size or style of jean. Now I join those ranks. LOL
I had this megga awesome talk with a lady from Church tonight (who I just know is going to be a great new friend!!!) and in our discussion it occurred to me that I go down a jean size for every 10 - 15 lbs I lose. COOL!!!
That means not only will I fit comfortably (major point here) in those cute lil' size 18's I have (I CAN pour myself into them now but it all but cuts off circulation to my upper torso) but soon enough I could possibly make it to even a 16! A SIZE 16 people! That is huge - why you ask? Well, 16 is like, a NORMAL size and one down from that is 14 and one down from that is 12 -- and size 12, that is my goal!!!! I have not been a 12 since I graduated from HS almost 20 years ago and oh yea, I am soooo goin' back!!!!
OK now I have to go back a few weeks. My older sis Carlee (the weight loss wonder girl) and I were discussing jeans and how it is important to find ones that fit right. She was telling me for years she bought Gloria Vanderbilt, so does our other sister, Lisa, and they loved them. Me, not so much. All about size and proportions. Also Lee jeans, not so good for me. So then Carlee mentions the golden word in the perfect jeans world : THE GAP! Now that she has nearly made her goal (she is only 10 lbs away!!) and down to a size freakin' 6 pant, she is ready to make the plunge into a good, expensive, well fitting jean. She is ready to go shop at The Gap! GO CARLEE!
So then that of course brings me to this-- if and when I ever DO reach my goal of size 12's (I will someday soon) do I go all nuts and spend the bookoo bucks on the "perfect jeans" or not? I mean size 12 may not seem huge to some, but to me it is and it is very worthy of jeans 1/2 the price of a trip to the moon... but when it boils down to it, do you do it? or not? I mean $60-$110 for a pair of jeans? For real? I guess that would/could be a heckuva reward but man! I could buy a LOT of jeans for that much moolah - and then there is the ever looming thought of "could I really and truly ever look THAT good in a pair of Gap jeans?" After all, I am 37 *GULP!* and the mother of 4 kids!!! Good gads! Could I really pull it off?
Input please...

Darla

Wednesday

Mid week already - hmm. Where do the days go to? So, today is day 2 of my new job, I had Tues off bc the mgr was out and they couldn't do any paperwork w/out him there. So, today is day 2. We'll see how it goes! I am excited and amazingly nervous again and not sure why!! LOL
Today is also weigh in day. *sigh* The good news is that I have been OP (on plan) this week so far and today will show a signifigant change due to that. The bad news is that I was really OFF plan over the weekend and so I will be lucky to level out with last weeks weigh in. It is all good though - I am doing it now and that is what counts.
Biggest Loser last night - AMAZING awesome! Every week I cry. LOL Great season I think with a lot to offer on the emotional side as well and the normal guts and determination from the players!
Have to go squeeze in a walk/run before I get to work and have to get the kids outta here so have a good day and be good to yourselves!
Darla

**EDITED** Run was good, did almost 1.25 miles - weigh in not so good but good anyway. I am UP 8 oz from last week but I am DOWN over 2 lbs since Monday - the weekend was rough on me! LOL

Today IS The Day!

Well, today is the day. After staying home for over 4 years, I am back to work! Now, I know, staying home, being Mom, running the house and all the tons of babysitting I have done is MORE than work, but back into the workforce - ya know....

So, I go in at 9:00 a.m. for orientation and to start training. I am blind in this whole thing too. Have no idea what my schedule or hours will be, no idea what my rate of pay will be either. LOL! I have never worked in the Hotel industry and have really no clue what I am in for - but hey, I am up for the challenge! :O)

Had a good start to the morning. After fighting off a UTI all weekend and feeling super cruddy most of the day Sunday, I was determined today would start off right! I got up and went out for a run - did 2 miles with 1.1 of it run - not too bad considering it was freakin' 27 degrees outside! BRRRR! But, it was good and got my engine revved up for the day. I am really excited to go!

On the negative side - I didn't do much on the health front this weekend. Not much fitness or good foods. I really over endulged myself - and the scales showed it this a.m. too. :O( That is ok though bc I am on a new plan and new schedule and I'll do just fine! Still plan to make or break my goal by Thanksgiving so keep cheerin' me on!

Off to get the kids all rounded up and outta here then get dressed and ready to go myself! Have a GREAT day folks and a wonderful week ahead!
Darla

Today

Read this today, loved it.

"I'm so DONE being the fat girl... how about you?"

Maybe I need a tshirt that says that hugh? Something to motivate me!

:O) Darla
aka: 'the skinny chicken sister'

How to break that STINKIN' weight loss Plateau...

OK so I realized today, finally, that I am at what they call "A Plateau" in my weight loss journey. It has been a couple of months and I am stuck. Knee deep. I am stuck. Thankfully I am not gaining... so thankfully, but it is really discouraging to be where I am. *sigh* So, I have been researching online and in my magazines about weight loss plateau-ing and here is what I found. Hope it helps someone, and if not, it is reassuring to me to know I am not all alone and maybe by rehashing them out here with myself I will learn something that will help! :O) Darla

How to break a plateau...
- Trick your body, change up your routines with foods and workouts, your body apparently becomes accustomed to your fitness routines and diet so make it think!
- Increase your weight training (hmmm DARLA!!) and build up more muscle because that will burn more fat... (I knew that...) and don't worry about getting all beefy bc women don't generally get that way
- Cut carbs back a little - not all - don't go all Atkins crazy, just watch the carbs a little closer
- Increase your protien so that you can build that muscle that burns that fat
- Eat smaller more frequent meals
- Zig zag your calorie counting, high one day, low one day, again, tricking your body so that it does not know what to expect and speeds up the metabolism
- Do "bursts" during workouts - speed up for 30-60 seconds periodically through your cardio workouts

So far that is all I have found. The other (and obvious thing) is to not be a slave to the scales but to use other measurements. Measure your body by inches and keep a pair of "goal jeans" to work towards - eventually they'll fit right! :O) Trust me on that, I know!!!!!! Hope this helps someone else along with me - I am going to give it a try! If all else fails I wil just have to call Jillian in to cuss my butt out and Bob to dry my tears. LOL

Darla

Need Your Help! Please!

Has anyone ever used either one of these two products? If you have, were they worth the money - (one is pretty spendy) aka: did they work!? I have tried a bit of everything, and recently have been using a couple of over the counter things, also some Vit E and some special Avon lotion that is supposed to firm the neck, blah blah blah, but I am still hoping to heal and fade this stupid ugly scar out a lot more. I am sure there has to be something out there that works better than what I've found so far. I don't necessarily want to use makeup to cover it, basically because I dont' do a lot of makeup anyway and don't want to have to rely on that all the time, you know? Anyway, if you have any advice on these products please share if you can! Any other suggestions would be fabulous! Thanks so much!
Darla

photos to share..... a lot

OK just a ton of photos to share - enjoy!!

-Our friend Liz working on a baby quilt with the help of Hershey doggie and Baily kitty
-Christopher and Karen's Homecoming Dance Photos
-YUMMY chocolate strawberry cheesecake our friends daughter made for us last night
-Dani, Tiffany and Micheal being SILLY kids
-Christopher fixing the fire alarm batteries - how'd he get up there? Better yet, how'd he get DOWN?
-Tiffany on our last day with baby Noah
-Chris and Noah on his last day

Darla

18 baby!!!! No more 18W for me!

This is BIG!

REALLY REALLY BIG!!

Well, actually, it is smaller, but in the grand scheme
of things for ME it is HUGE!!!!

Running running running...

HOLY MOLY PEOPLE! I am worn out! I am back to the running thing with a vengence and after doing a good, long hard run yesterday (over a mile straight) I decided to keep right on trucking today. This a.m. I got my sister Lisa up and moving with me at 5 a.m. - and her daughter Mindy too - and we went and ran the greenbelt by the river. This is a 2.34 mile loop around the river and falls and it is a great early morning trek. Today we did three runs, one short warmup run and two long ones - well over a mile total. I think we actually did close to 1.5 miles total. It felt good and I am so glad I had company with me. HOWEVER....even if I did not, I had my new "toy" to keep me going! Ed bought me a Sansa Fuze MP3 player for my Bday and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it - and last night my oldest son Chris brought me what I have been DYING for - the running jacket/sleeve armband too! Now I am running in style baby! It is really nice and it worked fabulously this morning! THANK YOU CHRIS! XOXO

OK off and running, ha ha, literally! No, seriously, have a ton to do today, first day with no more baby Noah (sniff sniff) and lots to do. House, laundry, all that fun stuff plus Bday shopping with Lisa and maybe some other fun things! :O) We shall see. Tonight is ladies card class at Church, something I love and look forward to so much. I am anxious to go play with all my goodies and make some nice cards, heavens knows I have a TON of THANK YOU's to get out!

Alright, that is all from me - later folks!

Darla