Overdue Diet Update

My diet officially started on September 16th. If you want to see my before pictures you can reference my post that had those pictures right here.

I have been working REALLY hard at this. I cannot lie and say that the diet has been easy, fun, or enjoyable. Or that I have been pleasant all of the time. BUT it is working. For the first almost month I didn't really notice much of a difference when I looked in the mirror except that my face was a bit thinner.

On Friday, October 11th I went into my closet to pick out a dress to wear to my good friend, Hilary's, wedding and they were all too big!!!!!!! I had to run out to target to try and find something new (and cheap!) to wear. When I picked things out and headed into the fitting room I assumed it would be like my normal shopping trip, aka PLEASE LET SOMETHING FIT! Instead, most everything fit but I got to just decide what I liked and what I thought was cute. It was a fantastic feeling. My upper torso has thinned out a lot it seems.

Out with a friend in Cincy!

The next friday we had a funeral to attend for our grandmother :sad face: and I went into my closet (I am beginning to like these moments) and I found a dress deep in the back that I had purchased for my own wedding rehearsal  and rehearsal dinner 4.5 years ago. I had to have it taken in before the rehearsal and my mom picked it up for me the day of and it turned out to be too tight so I could not wear it. So last week I assumed "Well, this will never fit but why not attempt it since its so pretty and happens to be black and white." So I unzipped that dress and slipped it on....... TOO BIG! Around my ribs and bust is was huge! I am going to have to have it taken in this spring so I can wear it to a wedding or somewhere because I love it!

As of today I have lost 21.2 pounds!!!! This not only means that I broke the 20 pound mark yesterday but as of TODAY I also passed 50% of my goal amount of weight to lose. Now I only have 21 pounds to lose to be at my goal weight!!!!!!!! (and this goal was a lot lower than I thought I would really get).

Sunday Social and Forever 21 Discount Codes!

1. What do you value most in life? Being a mother to my son. He is the most amazing and precious thing that I have ever had. I cannot tell you how many days and nights I spent truly scared to death that I would never be someones "mommy", that I would never look into the eyes of a child that was mine, that I would never be someone's everything, that I would never get to hear someone say "mom" and be talking to ME. Those were the scariest thoughts I have ever had, the darkest days of my life, the moments I dont with on anyone. For those reasons I am 100% sure, without a doubt, that I value being a mother above anything else in this life.
2. What do you think is the greatest invention in your life and why? Advanced reproductive medicine.... specifically In Vitro Fertilization with Intercytoplasmic Sperm Injection and the ability to cryopreserve embryos and thaw and transfer them. This amazing science brought me Foster!
3. What do you think is the secret to a good life? Learning what is important... family, friends, and love. You need to surround yourself with people you love who are positive and supportive.
4. What would you most like to be remembered for when you’re gone? I would like to be remembered as someone that was accomplished and never gave up, someone that fought until I had nothing left and then fought more. I want to be remembered for my struggle and then for helping others with their struggle through my practice as a Nurse Practitioner.
5. What accomplishment in your life are you most proud of? Probably doing things that I never thought that I could do. If someone would have told me 10 years ago all of the things that I would have been through in my married life trying to expand my family I would have never believed it, and if I did believe it I would have never believed that I was strong enough to live through it all. But here I am, I'm still alive and I'm still sane (sometimes, haha).

Now for some Forever 21 codes!!!! I love Forever 21 and I'm sure plenty of you do too so use these codes to buy up some new stuff!

• Take 10% Off Sweaters at Forever 21! Use code: F21SWEATERS10. Valid 10/15/13-11/15/13. Shop now!

• 10% Off Plus Size Items at Forever 21! Use code: F21PLUSOFFER. Valid 10/15/13-11/15/13. Shop now!

• Find fun | fearless fashion at Forever 21. Get Free Shipping on orders over $50.

http://www.pntrac.com/t/SENHSEhKS0dDR0ZNSk5OQ0dGSElOTg

DIY Halloween Tulle Wreath

This was such an easy and fun project for my front door!

Things you will need:

14" wreath form (I used one of the twig ones but styrofoam works just as well)

25 yards of black tulle (the kind on a spool that is about 5" wide)

25 yards of orange tulle (again the kind on the spool that is about 5" wide)

10 yards Black Silk Ribbon- 1.5 or 2" wide

A patterned ribbon of your choosing

Pins

Fabric Scissors

*TIP: If you are using one of the twig wreath forms like I used then it is a good idea to leave the plastic wrap on it so that it isn't as messy and it will also prevent the twigs from getting wet in rain or inclement weather.*

Steps:

1. Wrap the wreath form in black silk ribbon so that the entire form is covered and cannot be seen. It is a good idea to use some pins and secure the ribbon on the inside of the wreath form so that the ribbon doesn't move.
2. Take your spool of black tulle and cut it into strips that are 18" long.
3. Take your spool of orange ribbon and cut it into strips that are 18" long.
4. Take a strip of black tulle and tie it onto the wreath form. You want to tie a square knot (left over right and then right over left). Do this with another black strip.
5. You will then do that same thing with 2 orange strips.
6. Repeat with 2 black and then 2 orange. (I use 2 of each to make the colors stand out and not bland in too much with each other). 
7. Push the pieces of tulle close to each other as you are tying them on so that they "poof".
8. Continue until you have no more tulle or your wreath is full and you are satisfied with how poofy it is.
9. At the bottom center of the wreath tie the decorative ribbon that you chose around the wreath and tie a bow!
10. At the top attach a loop to hang the wreath with pins to the back of the wreath.
11. Hang it up and enjoy!!!

Update on September Goals (FINALLY)

1. Finish My August Book- FAIL! I didn't even get to read ONE.SINGLE.PAGE. this month. This makes me so sad. Things are so busy and I really wish things would slow down because I really need a breather and some "me time".

2. Clean out my linen closet- Success! I cleaned this thing out and got rid of SO MUCH stuff out of there. It went in a giant box and the Salvation Army picked it up. Yay! 

A photo while I was cleaning it out!

The final product!

Go me!

3. Continue doing weekly Menu Planning- Mostly a fail. At the beginning of september I did really well with this but once I started my diet this had to end. I really couldn't plan meals because people in my house cant be expected to eat what I am eating. So the weekly meal planning came to an end.

4. Build Washer & Dryer Pedestal-  

This was what I set out to build:

It was a success! Here are some pictures of me building it and the final product:

5. Pick paint colors for my bedroom walls and stenciling- Painting the bedroom is on hold for now but as you can see I picked a color and painted the laundry room. Here is before and after:

6. Start building my custom upholstered headboard- This is on hold too. The bedroom makeover isn't on my budget right now =)

7. Try and make some time for my husband- We made it to all of our financial classes in september so yay for us!

So much to say and so little time! MINI-UPDATE!

Things have been SO busy lately that I haven't had time to post all of the things that I need to share with you guys. I promise to try and do better at this. I will add it to my goals this month, you know... the ones that I have been too busy to write, haha.

Here are some bullet point updates:

• I am down 13.4 pounds, GO ME!
• Diets suck, but I like seeing results. I miss sweet/sour things and fruit.
• I am done with the laundry room remodel (for now). I need to post the makeover and the building of my stand that I made for in there!
• I did my first chalk paint project and made my own chalk paint, this is also something that I need to post.
• I made my halloween costume for my huge halloween bash that I have ever year, CAN'T WAIT! This I will not be posting about or sharing until after the party =)
• I am working on a family budget, which is huge for us because we never really live by a budget.
• JD has been out of town for the last 2 weeks on business trips which means I have been single momming it..... send hard liquor.

Now you know why I am so busy!

So I will work on these updates ASAP. 

<3