One chapter closes...

May means school has come to an end. This has been a crazy year, having one in elementary, one graduating high school, one preparing for preschool next year, and one in the incubator.

 

We were sad that Anna was no longer able to be part of the Spanish Immersion program with us moving out of state, but her school offered some fun programs. For 6 weeks during winter she participated in the Winter Sports Program. She received weekly ski lessons in a small group and really excelled at kicking my butt down Targhee. She loved skiing and we're happy we'll be able to continue the sport with her.

 

Anna, first day 2nd grade

 

Field day at Victor Elementary

 

Last day of 2nd grade

 

My niece Autumn chose to come live with us for her senior year of high school. It was stressful at times, but mostly we really enjoyed having her with us. She's so damn funny! She made me laugh all the time and helped out when I asked. The girls really loved having her with us.

 

Autumn's first day of her senior year

 Graduation ceremony 

 

 Last day of high school. I'm so proud of Autumn for how hard she worked her senior year. She completed a bunch of college courses this year and I wish her the best in the future!

Oh, haven't you heard?



We got a little planned surprise in March. Last September we decided that if we were going to try for #3, now was the time. We are both getting "older" (seriously, when did 38 become OLD?), and the thought of starting all over again with midnight feedings, diapers and sleepless nights was loosing its appeal. So we took the plunge and I had my IUD removed.

If you know me you know I have PCOS, which means I've battled infertility in the past. It took us 2 years of trying, multiple attempts at A.I. (artificial insemination) and a few rounds of clomid with NO positive outcomes. We ended up getting pregnant with Anna about a month after I had my tubes flushed (which was no day at the park), but had with no extra help. With Abby it took us a year of trying. We were actually at the doctors office getting ready to discuss the next steps when we found out we were pregnant with her.

The one consistent thing that happened prior to getting pregnant each time...loosing weight. I lost about 10lbs all three times before getting pregnant. Having PCOS makes it quite hard to lose the weight and carrying around extra weight means more side effects of the condition...one being infertility.

Because PCOS messes with your "schedule", there was really no way for me to calculate ovulation. We just guessed, had fun and waited. And waited. And waited. I took a few tests throughout the winter and nothing. Come March I had only had 3 periods since September so being extremely late was not unusual. I felt crampy, was moody (extremely moody) and my boobs hurt. All totally typical PMS symptoms that I've dealt with when not on some type of birth control.

So one day back in March the girls and I headed to Idaho Falls to get out of the snowy town of Victor. We first went to lunch where I got a little woozy and then went to see a movie. On the way home I stopped off at the store and decided to pick up a pregnant test. As sad as it is to think now, I had told myself #3 wasn't going to happen and had planned to call the GYN in the morning to get back on birth control until summer, when Perk would get the big V. I bought a test thinking "the doctor will ask since I'm so late, so I might as well take one". This was a common drill when dealing with infertility doctors, they always had me test before starting the "next step".

I took a test that night. That test turned POSITIVE quicker than anything! I was shocked! What?? Pregnant? When did that happen?? I called Chris in "um, I have something I need to show you". He came in, I handed him the test, he smiled and I started BAWLING! All these crazy emotions just came flooding over me. Finally this explained WHY I had been an emotional crying-on-the-bathroom-floor-mess just two weeks before. Finally this explained why I couldn't not (and I mean COULD NOT!!) stop eating Cadbury mini-eggs. And I mean CRAVED them like a smoker craves a cigarette type craving!! It was bad. I brought down inventory at the local grocery store!

I had prematurely told myself #3 wasn't going to happen, so I was totally okay with just having the two girls. I was okay with not having the chance to have a boy. Abby was finally old enough that I thought this fall we could go to Disneyland. The girls were finally old enough that we can start traveling with them and they can have fun with us.

So when the test show we were pregnant and I started crying, it's not that I didn't want #3, I was just so relieved it finally made sense why I was a mess the past few weeks and I was mad at myself for giving up so soon on the thought of expanding. It's hard to explain, I was shocked, a little scared and very relieved.

We told the girls a few days later, swore them to secrecy until our first appointment and that sealed the deal. Seeing the girls SO EXCITED to have another baby is well worth the sleepless nights to come. They rub my belly and talk to her (yes, another girl! Bust out the pink tutus!!), they ask questions about being pregnant all the time (some I am so NOT answering truthfully at this point!), Anna talks about how she'll help out and the best part is that they are in love with the thought of a baby in the house. It took me a few weeks to really start feeling "pregnant".

Now at 20 weeks I am finally showing that there is a baby in there and not just a few extra burger and fry meals. I rub my belly every night and I'm feeling her swim around.

I've learned that sometimes my plan doesn't always match up with the plan God has for me. But in the end, his plan is always the one that leads us to our next miracle, our next blessing, and now our next little girl come this November!

The Test

 

Our fun announcement my good friend created for us.

 

At our 18 week appointment. The girls dressed in blue...but in the end it's all PINK!
 

 

The 20 week belly 

This guy turned 40

When 40 comes around you have to celebrate HUGE right?

 

For MONTHS I had been planning and scheming to get some of Perk's friends to come up for the weekend to help celebrate.  

To start the party off, I hired a fishing guide to take Chris and Josh on the Henry Fork River. All I can say is that is was a huge success because the pictures I got of them...SMILES FROM EAR TO EAR!! Perk even said "I've been spoiled, it's the only way to fish now!"

We spent some time shopping and wandering around Jackson Hole. The kids loved the candy store (as did Brett!), the stuffed animals and of course the ladies loved the shopping!

 

To make the weekend even better, we all pitched in and rented a beautiful cabin for the weekend in Wilson, WY (right outside of Jackson). It fit us all (had bedrooms for everyone, including one extra!), had a hot tub that the kids loved and was surrounded by trees! Perk was so happy to be able to have all his buddies in one spot for the weekend. Let's just say Friday night was long and loud!

 

The kids were in the hot tub any chance they got!

 

The cabin was also quite cozy. I loved the oversized chairs. Nothing better than snuggling up with your BFF!

And of course trying to get a normal picture of Sara and Virginia together is always difficult.

YOU'RE A LLAMA!

 This is the cake you get when you walk into Smiths, grab one at the bakery and they don't really have anyone in the bakery dept that can decorate on such notice. I'm so creative!!

"Just write 40 OLD" and that's what I got. 

 

 

 

Saturday night we all went to Q Roadhouse for Perk's birthday dinner. The food was amazing and we all left stuffed! 

Thanks so much to the Tamagawa's and Wheatley's for making it up for Perk. We had a great time and love that you guys helped Perk ring in 40!!

Ready for Spring

Don't get me wrong. I love skiing.

But I'm SO ready for spring.

I've had enough of the snow.

The snowy wind storms.

The slick roads.

The plowing of the driveway.

The slush and the ice under the slush.

 

 

The Teton Diet

Let me first start off by saying "You're Welcome"

 

Because after you eat a hamburger from Brakeman's Grill in Victor, ID, you will never again want what "the other guys" call a "burger" at a drive-thru fast food place.

 

Brakeman's is by far the best.

And if they are closed or are too busy to seat...you walk across the street to what looks like a closed business called the Station...and you eat a burger from them. Very close 2nd place in my book.

 

This is why Dolvett is my new BFF. He helps me avoid things like this until it's cheat day. BUT then gently reminds me that I should still be "smart" when tempted with something like this. Smaller portions, enjoy a salad first, Maybe no bread or cheese? But then again, it's MY cheat day so I ultimately get to decide.

 

 

We also make up for our cheat days by juicing. Perk LOVES to juice everything under the kitchen sink! The more fruits and veggies you pack into that thing, the better he feels. I definitely now know I will have a veggie garden box this summer in our back yard!!

I really need a name for my home gym

 Well here it is. My home gym. There isn't much but it definitely has enough to get most of the job done. I'm pretty proud of my set up here because I can really work out hard and mix it up and get all the exercises in that I need.

 

I have a Proform Treadmill that has a kick ass incline option

Next to that is my old skool weight bench. It has an incline for chest presses, can do flies and then ham & quad curls and I've got quite a few weigh rolls so I can increase the intensity as I build up.

HA! We're still building up so I pretty much keep it at 25lbs for now!! LOL

 

I've also incorporated my old Reebok Step Bench. It's great because I can lower or raise it for different cardio jumps or body lifts. I also have a yoga mat (that the dog things is his) that I use for floor exercises or stretching. 

I have a large stability ball and a smaller one. The large on I actually had at my office and would sit on it while working to help build the core up a bit. Most times I'm afraid to say I did nothing more than bum rolls and bouncing on it! :)

 

I have a nice supply of free weight ranging from 2lbs up to 25lbs.

I would LOVE to get a kettle bell, but lifting one of those compared to doing the same exercise with say an 8lb dumbbell doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.

 

Speak up ladies? Kettle bell. Is it worth owning???

 

I also bought this contraption.

I really wanted to have bands to work on shoulders and of course upper arms.

So far no kids have been yelled at and the cat could care less.

Win-Win for Me!

 

This is my leftover box. It contains a few older bands and a small medicine ball. It's kind of like me "go put it in or go find it in" basket 

 

 And lastly...my trainers.

I have the P90X set

I have the Insanity set

I use the Nike Training App on the iPad

I have exercise videos from Jillian Michaels (I totally ordered her 2 yoga dvd's tonight...honest to God I did!!), I have some Shakeology free DVD, the full Zumba kit, The Firm, MMA Deka 10 and countless others that are still themselves stuck in the 80's...VHS tapes!! I miss Buns of Steel and Step Bench from the 80's.

 

I really need to get a VCR so I can reinvest time!! I might need some hot pink spandex and a can of aerosol hairspray to pull it all off!!

Anyhow ladies, this is my gym. It's at home in my basement and it's where the kids know that when Mommy is working out, they need to be playing or reading or anything else other than being in the room asking a million questions, or tattle telling, or yelling that they are hungry.

This is where Mommy puts on her headphones and zones out to HOUSE OF CARDS for 55 minutes of ME time. Most times I just pretend I can't hear a single word they say when I'm in the zone.

Why 2014 will be MY year

You never really think about how out of place you could feel being away from your own home. The home you've lived in for 6 years, in a city you've lived in for 12 and in the only state you EVER lived it all together. You justify it as "I'm an adult and this is what adults do". Right?

 

You think life will just continue on the same way it has. No real big changes.

Right?

 

Wrong.

 

Moving from a big city in Utah to a small town in Idaho was a HUGE change for me.

Gone are my neighbors whom I would speak to almost every day. Just standing out in the front yard chatting about cars (Subaru's and Jeeps), recipes, money strategies, clothes, activities. You name it, the ladies and I discussed it.

 

Gone are the dozens of neighbor friends who would use that revolving door on the front of your house to make their way in and out all summer long.

 

Gone are being invited to house parties the women threw, church gatherings with the ward, waving hello to the other moms out pushing strollers, getting in their nightly walks around the block.

 

Gone are the quick trips to Target, the mall, dozens of cheap restaurants or crafty stores (man I REALLY miss Hobby Lobby!)

 

Gone. All gone.

 

This town I live in is great. The beauty alone is enough for someone people. I'm more a people person than a tree person. I need that interaction. For the most part, all of the women I've met are quite nice. With such a small town I'll usually see the same women at the grocery store as I do dropping Anna off at school. One of Autumn's friends moms, I saw ALL THE TIME at the store and never realized who she was until we were finally introduced in church.

 

Small town.

 

Well over December I fell into a slump. Being sad about all the things you're missing can really make it hard to enjoy what you do have. A big chocolate covered, lazy day in sweats slump. It probably started in October and November but really became prominent in December. I went lazy. I was completely unmotivated to do anything. A little sad at times missing how Christmas "would have been" back in Layton. And I let the ugly emotional eating Cindy come out. I don't deal with EE.Cindy much, but this time she came and she was strong. She brought with her about 7 extra pounds too.

 

So feeling fat, lazy, unmotivated is one thing. Feeling that and having your husband totally call you out on it, is another. Now let me clear something up...NEVER did Perk call me fat. A). he's not that type of man to EVER knock my weight and B). he knows better. But when the husband comes home from working all day and there is no dinner ready and no idea of what dinner should be...he's a little bothered. I was lazy. I didn't make any. I'm a SAHM and I didn't even think to make any. What? You people need to be fed?

 

He excused it the first time, but by the forth lazy excuse...he spoke up. I've known how I was feeling for a while. I saw the roles on my stomach become more noticeable and harder to suck in and the jeans harder to fit into.  I felt my energy levels keep getting lower and lower until the mention of how often I nap was actually interfering with my night time sleeping.

 

So I stopped and I started paying attention to fit blogs and fit instagram accounts. I had also read quick review about a diet with cheating allowed!! I had just started following Dolvett Quince on Instagram and was reading all about his new book coming out. I immediately

went to Amazon/Google/B&N to read the inserts. FEEL IN LOVE THE FIRST FEW WORDS!!!

First off, Dolvett is H.O.T. so looking at that face isn't hard, and being a huge fan of the Biggest Looser I figured this is the book for me. I trust the guy, I love the guy and he practices what he preaches. Let's do it.

 

So we bought the book and on Christmas morning and opened it up, said "LET'S DO IT" and started reading.

 

By far the best diet plan out there. Clean eating used to scare me. It scared me that I wouldn't be allowed many of the foods I really enjoy. And what's the point in living if you can't enjoy the things you really love?  I've tried diets where the first 3 days are called "detox" and you eat nothing buy green raw veggies and lean meat. That's it. NO OTHER FOODS OR INGREDIENTS. We actually tried it again months ago and I about died the 3rd day. Could not wait to get real food in my body.

 

Well this book is not like that.

The 3-1-2-1 stand for clean eating days and cheat days

Eat clean for 3, cheat for 1, eat clean for 2, cheat for 1.

Keeps your body guessing by mixing up the cheat days and keeps your metabolism in gear.

PLUS the clean eating days are pretty simple to follow. Like REALLY simple.

And when cheat days do come, you still need to be somewhat smart about them. Don't eat the WHOLE pizza, but enjoy a slice with a green salad on the side.

 

It's an easy to read book. He offers great suggestions and has a detailed weekly meal plan for you to follow. And the stuff on his menu won't cost an arm and a leg at the store. Yogurts, string cheese, lean meats, almonds,....pretty easy.

 

And the great thing is, as you eat clean, you feel so much better. I have way more energy that before and I think I'm loosing the cravings for the junk food. I used to buy the big bags of M&M's and I could eat them (by myself mind you) in 2 days. It's an addiction and I'm breaking that. I refuse to buy them anymore so I'm not tempted to eat them. But even now, when I pass them in the stores, if I've been eating clean they don't even sound good to me anymore. I don't really notice them when I'm in the aisle. That's progress!!

 

So this is the book that so far has helped me drop 6lbs. That was in  the first 1.5 weeks. (My cold derailed my plan last week but we'll jump right back on).

 

I've marked my meal and recipe pages with post-it notes for quick reference. I've highlighted and underlined and made notes on the things that have stood out the best to help me.

 

 

The book also has a complete exercise program set up by Dolvett to follow. Very doable without expensive gym equip or a membership anywhere.
 

So there you have it. This is the book that will help me, become the strong, fit Cindy I know I have in me. I've seen her before and I'll see her again!!

 

It doesn't mean that in September you'll see me jump out of an airplane, or hike the tallest mountain or complete in an Iron Man competition.

 

What it means is that I'll be healthy. And comfortable in my skin. Even wearing a bathing suit and not one that will cover things or smash them in, or conceal...  Get ride of the fatty thighs and wiggly arms. Get rid of having to cover up because "I" think it looks bad. Get rid of the self doubt, the low self esteem and become the mom and wife not only do I know I can me, but the mom and wife my family deserves!

 

For me this book is a miracle in that it came at the exact right time I needed it to. It's helping me, which in turn is helping Perk on his weight loss journey as well.

 

I hope anyone looking for a little help will pick up Dolvett's book and get as inspired by it as I have! Best of luck!