Goals & plans for 2015

Oh hello, my long-neglected blog! Who knew adding a baby to the mix AND going back to work full-time was so time consuming? ;)

I love the beginning of the year for the fresh start it brings. Out with the old, in with the new. I typically make a huge list of very specific resolutions and get so overwhelmed with sticking to all of them that I fail miserably to stick with even one.

There are several things I want to accomplish this year, but I'm cutting myself some slack and picking more realistic goals so I don't set myself up for failure :) Ironically, one of my goals this year is to let go of the need for perfection, so this will be a good exercise for that.

Here's some things I'd like to see happen this year:

• Get Oliver (mostly) potty trained. We started the potty training process last June and he is 100% potty trained at home when he's naked. He runs right to the bathroom when he has to go and never has a problem. But apparently letting your kid run around in public naked is a no-no, so we still have some work to do :) 
• Set up a little photo studio in our house. Oregon is too cold and/or wet a good portion of the year to do outdoor photos, so we're finally bringing the photos indoors. We're drawing up plans right now and hope to have something set up later this month in time for Valentine's Day mini sessions :)
• Pay off my student loans this year. I think I have until the end of 2016 to pay them off, but I've been paying extra as often as possible and hope to be totally done by October of this year. 
• Explore Oregon more. We rarely leave the city (or even our house) anymore, but there is so much beauty to see in this state and I am eager to expose the kids to it. I'm aiming for 1 day-trip each month, even if it's super close (but it has to be a new-to-us place).
• Eat less sugar. I have a sweet tooth like none other and have noticed that Oliver asks for sugary stuff a lot more often now :( So it's time to cut back and lead by example with what I eat.
• Do one small house project a month. Our tentative plan is to put our house up for sale Spring 2016, so we need to start doing a little at a time so its ready by then. We need new carpet, new tile in the bathrooms, a new fence in the backyard, new grass/landscaping and minor repairs inside & outside. We also need to pare our belongings down as we go along, but I'm married to a hoarder (i.e.: I finally convinced him to get rid of his floppy disc collection just a few years back) so it will be tough. lol
• Be in more photos. I'm always the one behind the camera and it bums me out to look through my photos and only have a handful of shots with me & the kids in them :( So that is definitely something to work on for this year!

These are the main ones. Of course I am always looking to improve in all areas of my life (exercise more! watch less tv! read to the kids more! spend less!), but the items above are ones that I feel are not only very important, but also attainable. So wish me luck and hopefully I will have a chance to check back in in the next few months to share my progress :)

Best wishes for 2015 to you & yours :)

A birthday tribute to Liz

I was almost 13 when my sister Liz was born. I don't remember any of the bad stuff that goes along with bringing a baby home (not sleeping through the night, diaper blowouts, crying fits), I just remember how cute she was and how much I loved having a little sister. I'd dress her up in pretty clothes, play toys with her, watch Disney movies 8 times in a row (she figured out how to rewind the VCR to play her favorites over & over), "coach" her for gymnastics in the living room.

Some of my favorite memories of Liz through the years...

• Her Teletubbies phase
• Her attachment to Tickle me Elmo
• Having The Little Mermaid on repeat for days at a time
• Liz's little voice and laugh when she was younger. Cutest thing in the world!
• Teaching her gymnastics fundamentals and how important it was to have good form and pointed toes. We'd do forward rolls on the couch and handstands on the carpet. I was convinced she was going to be an Olympic champion. lol
• Having little photo sessions when she was younger and I was just getting into photography. My earliest photos were blurry and terrible, but my favorite one is of her probably 2 years old in a leotard clutching her Elmo, striking a model pose. Liz has always been game to let me practice photography on her :)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ha9y_O6iz9c (I still say this alll the timeee)
• "Have you met my friend Boddie?"
• Liz and her violin concerts. It started in 4th grade as just a little hobby and now as a senior, Liz blows everyone away with her amazing talent. She is a true rockstar!
• Taking photos of Liz & her outfits on her 1st day of school. I think I stopped when she hit 5th grade since I wasn't living in Salem at the time :( I really wish I would have kept doing it!
• Standing back-to-back to see if she was taller than me yet (she just recently passed me, by the smallest of margins. Ugh!)
• All the birthdays and holidays we've shared as a family
• Seeing how great she is with her nephew Oliver :)

I could go on for days, but those are the highlights. I am so impressed by how smart, driven and motivated my sister is! I am so proud of her violin talent and what a truly kind person she is. Despite the age difference, my baby sis is still one of my best friends and I'm excited to see what the future holds for her.

I love you Liz, you are the best little sister I could ever ask for :) Happy 18th birthday!

Project Refresh: Month 1

We're about half-way through the month so I thought I'd check in with where I am on my monthly goals:

Project Refresh: Month 1

• Stick to a schedule: When I was unemployed in 2009-2010, I loved to map out my entire day, hour-by-hour down to the exact time I would eat my lunch (it would always coincide with People's Court at 12pm. lol). I crave routine and a schedule and knowing what I'll be doing at what time. Newsflash: Your kid doesn't care what time People's Court is on or what tasks you've planned out for your day! I'm lucky that Oliver usually takes 2 naps during the day and I scramble to get things done during that time, but the rest of the day is spent feeding/changing/playing with Oliver. It's a little frustrating, but I'm getting used to being more productive in those little pockets of time that I do have.
• Take more photos: I've kept up with taking photos every day, so this one has been a success so far!
• Clear the clutter: Sadly, I haven't had much time to focus on this category at all. During Oliver's nap times, I've been editing photos like a madwoman (we've been really busy these past few weeks) and that has taken most of my free time. I'm all caught up at the moment (although Derek is at a wedding taking photos as I type this, so more editing is coming up) so I'm hoping to tackle at least a closet or two in the next week.

All in all, I'm enjoying unemployment and hanging out with my little dude every day. I just feel like I'm so behind on things and will never get caught up, but I guess that won't change anytime soon :)

Post-baby body update

I've been putting this post off for months, but it's time to get motivated and get to work! I'm just about back down to my pre-pregnancy weight, which doesn't mean all that much since things have kinda shifted around. lol. Gaining 35+ pounds and having a baby messes with your body; who knew?! ;)

This is me, May 2011, a few months before getting pregnant.

Stats:
Weight - 113
Chest - 34"
Waist - 25.5"
Hips - 35.5"

This is me now, January 2013, 8 months after having a baby.

Stats:

Weight - 115

Chest - 35.5"

Waist - 27.5"

Hips - 35.5"

I don't look all that much different, but I'm still holding onto extra junk in the middle that is driving me crazy and causing a not-so-awesome muffin top. So my main focus is going to be working on my mid-section in hopes I don't have to buy all new loose-fitting shirts :)

I really don't have a plan of attack this time around. I KNOW what I need to do, it's just hard to get the energy and motivation to do it. Working full-time and being a mom to a very energetic little boy is exhausting. The last thing I want to do when I put Oliver down to bed is work out, but I know it has to be done. I also need to tweak my diet to include a lot more fruits/veggies and a lot less carbs/sugar, but just the thought of all that menu planning/grocery shopping/cooking makes me tired.

Exercising outside is pretty much out of the question since I hate the cold/wet weather and I will just find excuses to not do it. I'm thinking it's time to dust off the old xBox Kinect and at least get moving a little more each day. Once I get a routine going and start eating healthier, I'll check in again in a month or so and see if there's been any progress. Or to fess up if I quit after 2 days and went back to eating donuts. lol.

So there you have it. Embarrassing bikini photos AND a vow to put down the chocolate & get my body moving. How much worse can this day get?! :)

Wish me luck! 

Thanks sista!

My sister-in-law Amber mentioned me in her blog entry about getting into shape. Now I feel guilty for being lazy and not following through on the fitness goals I've set for myself. So now that I've been called out, it's time to get back on track and tone up!

I leave for California on August 14th and am determined to work out every. single. day until that date. I worked out last night for the first time in weeks, so that's a start. I figure if I can make it until August 14th, I will be motivated to continue when I come back from vacation.

Since we all need a little visual stimulation, how about a few photos from (you guessed it!) pinterest. If these won't make you get off your lazy ass, I'm not sure what will :)

June photos

In an effort to update more often, I figure I can post some photos to break up all the long entries. It's much more convenient to take photos with my iPod, so my poor camera has been neglected lately. I'm hoping to take my camera out more often this summer. I miss photography.

These photos were taken on Father's Day at my mom's house. I didn't get many portraits this time, just nature-y stuff mostly. We had a steak & lobster dinner with my mom/step-dad, grandparents and little sis. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday :)