2014 Already?

I'm a bad blogger...has it really been since August that I typed anything up?  Yup, I've been slacking on a lot of fronts for the last half of 2013.

"Binary Dad", "Binary Kid", & Mom

Weight loss?  Try weight gain...
Mom of the year?  Ha!  At least he's clothed and fed...

On the bright side, both hands are now in working order...I can bend both thumbs again!  I realize you are probably thinking "what the heck is up with her thumbs?"  Well...last February (2013), I was diagnosed with all three RMI (repetitive motion injuries) that you can get...Trigger thumb (the reason I couldn't bend my thumbs), Carpel Tunnel (hands went numb quickly), and DeQueirvain's Tendonitis (something to do with the tendon that runs from your wrist to your thumb, I only had it "released" on my left hand and can't see any difference than in my right).  I had surgery in the first week of September and the first week of November, leaving me pretty useless for most of the months before and after.

We also lost Gabe's Grandpa in November, so life is "adjusting" still.

Where did that year go?!?

This year, I am getting back on track though.  No more excuses, well...one more, but I am trying to work with it.  I've been having trouble with my right knee.  I was diagnosed (again) with tendonitis, this time in my knee!  Starting next week, I'll be going to physical therapy twice a week for the next 6 weeks, in hopes of it getting better.  If it doesn't I may be looking at another surgery.

My blender that can supposedly make Ice Cream...finally got it working!

I'm also restarting my low-carb journey, with some minor tweaking because we are still breast feeding here.  I'll be starting in "phase 4", or lifetime maintenance.  I don't want to cut carbs drastically and cause issues for the little man.  He also loves to stuff Cheerios in my mouth, so I figure this way I may not stall out or gain when he decides I look like I need a "two Cheerio snack break"!  I plan on shooting for the 80 carbs a day end of the 80-100 carb spectrum and dropping into "phase 3" if I need to to see a change on the scale.  Let's be honest for a minute...I currently weigh 5 pounds more than I did the night before our almost 15 month old (next week!) was born!  That's a lot of poundage considering I was down to only 5 pounds heavier than before he was concieved by the time he was 2 months old.

(01/01/2014) Current weight: 302.0
(06/01/2014) 6-month Goal: 250.0
(01/01/2015) 12-month Goal: 200.0
(06/01/2015) 18-month Goal: 150.0

Well, there it is...by June, I want to be back down to what I weighed 2 years ago.  I can do it!  But, not by diet alone this time...nope, this time I will also be working out from the beginning!  In fact, I am starting with working out!

We have a family membership at a gym near our house, it has free daycare, a swimming pool, running track (walking for me), all sorts of machines (even a "women's center" with a door to the daycare room), and trainers!  Of course, I have been waiting for a call from the trainer since we joined...but since I haven't been able to take advantage of the gym anyway, I'm not too upset (I plan on trying to get with a trainer when I start going in regularly so that they can help set me up to succeed).  My goal for the gym is go in once a week to start...little man has horrible separation anxiety and has never been watched by anyone but my Mother (who lives 400+ miles away, so not often), so I figure the first month or so will be "workout free" while he gets used to the idea of playing with a "stranger" while I work out.

To aid in my "exercise to lose weight" goals, we brought the Wii back upstairs.  I ordered three new workout games to go along with Wii Fit and Wii Fit Plus (that I already owned).  I picked up Jenny McCarthy's Your Shape, the one that comes with a cute little webcam, Jillian Michael's Fitness Ultimatum 2010 (I really don't like the way she trains on The Biggest Loser, but for the ~$6 I paid for the game, I'll give her a shot), and Gold's Gym Dance Workout.

My impressions so far (I got them yesterday)...

Dance Workout

Your Shape

• Your Shape: Holy dog poop, this one makes you sweat!  I know...it's supposed to...love the camera, not real happy about her yelling at me to match her moves or "focus on your arms/legs"!  I can't really bend my right knee right now (that's what the PT is for), and there's no getting down on the floor without someone near to help pick me up since I can't put weight on my knee (Garrick had to drag me out of the tub a while ago because I literally could not get out on my own!).
• Fitness Ultimatum 2010: Haven't loaded this one up yet...frankly, I'm intimidated by Jillian Michaels' and right now I'm "evaluating" these three games to decide which one I'm going to stick with for a while.
• Dance Workout: I am so not coordinated enough for this game!  I get my right and left confused and it is so fast paced, I miss out on most of the workout trying to untangle my legs from each other.  This one is losing out on the "gonna do this one first" race.

 My goal for these "games" is to do one workout everyday  I'm not in the gym, so 6 days a week. 

Sharing my Burrito Blanco at Azteca...this is one of our favorite meals, but beans, rice, and flour tortilla are going bye-bye.

I made Peanut/Pumpkin Seed Brittle for Christmas!

Munching on a quartered hot dog wrapped in half a refrigerator biscuit...he loves these!

Phone's for you, Mom!

Starting his early love for Starbuck's (water)...

How to keep a baby properly strapped into his car seat and warm!  A car seat poncho, made by yours truly for a whopping $8...you can purchase one on Etsy for $40 if you can't sew...

Fun with Gak!  Flour + water + blue food coloring = a ton of fun!  Until it's time to clean up...

Rosie has taken to cuddling with the stuffies and baby blankets...I think we've watched enough Doc McStuffins, she may think they're really alive and really do need cuddles!

Daddy bought himself a PS4 for Christmas...now if only they'd come out with workout games for it!  We currently have the PS2, PS4, and the Wii all hooked up with motion/sensor bars all stacked on top of each other!

Our "Elf in Training" because Mommy is too cheap to spend $30+ on a creep looking elf when she's perfectly capable of crocheting a whole wardrobe for Barbie, and she can "report to Santa" every night.  She currently has two other dresses, an apron (for baking), and a bolero in her wardrobe as well...working on another set, but the pattern is problematic...

Santa came!  We decided that our family traditions (Garrick, little man, and I) will be a blend of family traditions...we opened all of our gifts Christmas morning, from family and Santa.  We had planned to order pizza and watch the Batman series of movies (we got the boxed set last Christmas and still haven't watched the second and third movies), but as plans with a toddler tend to change, it was visiting Grandma, dinner at IHOP, and home in time for bed.  As time goes on, we'll come up with some Christmas Eve traditions.

Now, do not look past here if you don't want to see me in my underwear.  The following photos are my starting photos for getting back in gear for losing weight.  I have yet to find my measuring tape to get actual measurements, but I did "suck it up" and take a clothed and unclothed photo of myself (not naked).  I also set up a "motivation jar", which in this case is a big wine glass, full of 154 glass beads.  It's pretty, but more importantly, for every pound I lose, I get to move a glass bead out of the jar and when it's totally empty, I've reached my weight loss goals!
































Do Not Scroll unless you want to see it!

Well, there I am...I'll do another picture in 6 months and 12 months.