Let's embrace 2010 together!

Am I brave or what, for posting this again? Yes, it is a crazy women in a speedo bathing suit standing in a few feet of snow. (I did this as a dare a few years ago). I was trying to figure out a New Year's post and this just came to mind. I am embracing 2010. I am entering 2010 with a positive attitude that the economy will turn around and work will pick up for everyone. I will continue on my exercise journey and a healthier way of eating. I want to attempt things in 2010 that I have never done before. This past year had it's challenges that I overcame and am a stronger and more confident person because of them. I never thought I could run an office by myself, but I proved that I could and I loved doing it. I never gave myself enough credit, but from now on, I am going to soar and embrace 2010 in a powerful way.
Happy New Year everyone!

2009 Christmas memories

Just a few of the many special cards I received.
Jack in his sleep sack right before bedtime....
Gray with T-Rex Mountain and holding his new doggy, that is named Mimi, but he changed it to Bella.Ivy looking cute in her new outfit, playing with her dollhouse.
Abby, loving her new Disney doll.
Carter so proud of his Bears Jersey.
Noah, Jeff and Carter surprised to open a Wii. They were so excited. It was a Wonderful Christmas.

Our Christmas miracle!

First of all, Happy Birthday Jesus! I am so thankful on this Christmas day to have a Healthy, Happy, Handsome 8 year old, almost 9 year old Grandson, Noah. He is seizure free and is healed of epilepsy. I am amazed at the growth of this precious boy. So, you can have all the presents, tinsel and bows, This is my gift. I LOVE this little man.
picture taken last night on Christmas eve...

A Christmas message

My Christmas message is to first wish my husband a Merry Christmas. We decided not to exchange gifts with one another this year. The effects of the economy has really hit hard in our household with him being in the Automotive industry. My hubby is a very hard worker and I appreciate him for who he is and putting himself last most of the time. Our family can ALWAYS count on him. He is one of the smartest people I know and I think our daughter, Steph inherited that from him. He is sometimes quiet and a good listener. His dream has always been to be able to afford gifts to take to all of the children in the hospitals at Christmas time. Last Christmas I told him of a family in need and without question, he handed me money to give to that family. This is just the type of Man he is. If he has it, he gives it. I am so thankful this Christmas season to have 35 years of marriage with him. If I had the money I would buy him a brand new truck, that he really needs and has been wanting and is so deserving of. I decided, we don't need gifts because we already have our gift of health and we have each other. My prayer for 2010 is for a prosperous year and the economy turns around for everyone.
Merry Christmas to All my family and friends. I have the best kids and grand kids. God has blessed them with wonderful mates and in-laws.
Let's not forget that Jesus IS the Reason for the Season. Enjoy your celebrations with your family and friends and have a Very Safe and Happy New Year!
Love and Peace to All!
Mimi

Saturday with Abby & Jack

Saturday was a full day with Abby & Jack. Their mommy & daddy went to a Symphony in Chicago and was gone the whole day.

This is the gingerbread house that Abby and I made a few weeks ago. It has been sitting in the middle of the dining room table. Grampa decided to put the train together, which was a lot of fun for Jack & Abby to watch. By the end of the day, coconut (snow) was everywhere. But almost anything goes at Mimi's house.
Abby, so proud of her gingerbread house.

Jack is so jolly and just a joy to have around. I can't believe he is already 7 1/2 months old.
Abby loves to put on her Cinderella dress (Steph's flowergirl dress from 30 years ago) and wear some of my jewelry. She is such a girly girl.
Jack adores his sister. He laughs and lights up when she walks in a room. I am so thankful for my new camera so I can start sharing my wonderful grand kids again. It was a great Saturday!

You Capture - Holiday Decor

I have my new camera at work and thought I would snap a few pictures of my office area. This is where I spend 9 hours per day M-F, unless I leave for an hour for lunch. Holiday Decor is the assignment for You Capture over at Folding Laundry .
This is the first time using my new camera.

I have lots of grand-kid pictures surrounding me, which brings lots of Joy!

This is my wall of Happiness.
I will be taking lots of pictures this weekend while babysitting. I have Abby & Jack on Saturday and Noah, Carter, Gray & Ivy on Sunday. Should be a fun weekend. I am still learning how to use my new camera. It has a lot more fancy bells and whistles than my other one. I hope You Capture Christmas in your own special way.

# 7 Final Challenge Weigh in

After a week of some temptations, and off my schedule a little bit, I still managed to lose "1" lb. making my total lost at "11" I am very excited about this 1 pound. I am still in control and that makes me very proud of my accomplishments. I had one night this week that I got up and just had to have some cocoa puffs. It was during a moment of waking up out of a deep sleep and finding myself in my kitchen. I did not have a big dinner that night and I guess I was hungry. But, I didn't let that one night throw me off for the week, like I usually would. I didn't throw in the towel. I admit I did have some Christmas cookies here and there (Steph's were delicious) and a bite of toffee a co-worker brought in, oh and I forgot about the small piece of my boss's birthday cake I baked. So, see, I can still have some goodies here and there in moderation and still lose a pound.

I did go to my Curves workouts faithfully, Mon. thru Friday and walked on my treadmill when I thought I overate that day. I am still very pumped about getting this weight down and if it takes me a while to do it, at least I am moving in the right direction. I hope everyone else had a great week as well. This is the hardest time of the year to try to lose, so let's pat ourselves on the back for being so dedicated. Thank you sisterhood for the challenge. It was very motivating for me!

Early Christmas Gift

I have the best daughter and son-in-law.

I came home from work yesterday and there it was, sitting on my kitchen table, a camera box wrapped in shiny garland. There sat just what I asked for Christmas. A Nikon Coolpix S230 with a large touch screen. As most of you know, my beloved camera got broken back in October. I have felt lost without it. Like a part of me was missing. I missed so many memories of my grand kids and activities. My daughter knew how much I loved my camera and decided to surprise me by giving it early, so I can enjoy it. It is actually an upgrade from my last camera. Now I can share pictures of my grand kids again with you. I can't wait to get started! Thank you Jeff & Steph for making my Christmas so special. I love you, Mom

Let it snow

I love snow. I can't take credit for this beautiful snow scene picture. Gee, I miss my camera. I hope Santa got my letter I sent him asking for a new one. Snow gives me a happy feeling. I look at this picture and it makes me think of the journey I've been on since October. The road isn't looking as long these days as it use to look. I love the purity in a freshly fallen snow. I love the way it reminds me of coconut.
I love how it reminds me of the time when I was a little girl and making snow angels and my mom making snow cream with snow we collected in a bucket, clean of course. I remember the snow storm in the 60's, living in Chicago and how there was so much snow, the roads were closed and we got to play in the middle of our street. My little brother got his foot stuck in a hole and my sister and I left him there, crying. We eventually went back for him. I remember walking down to our local store to get a loaf of bread and all the shelves were almost empty. The delivery trucks were unable to get through the snow to deliver.
I still love snow.

#6 Weigh in

I had a Super Duper Great week with my eating and exercising. I am down 3 lbs., making my total lost 10 lbs. I am feeling so good about myself and my clothes are comfortable again. I have a routine that I am sticking by and it is working for me. I get up by 5:30 am. during the week and am usually the first to walk Thru the door at Curves by 6:00 am. I try to eat an energy bar (Sunrise bar from Costco) and few sips of coffee to get me going. I am home by 6:35 and out the door again by 7:30 for work. During the time I am getting ready for work I am preparing my meals for the day. When I get home at night I try not to eat while fixing dinner unless it is veggies or pretzels. Shortly after dinner, I am on the treadmill to do my 30 min. of brisk walking. I use to only walk 15 to 20 min. and was exhausted, but now I have more energy. It's been a long time since I have felt so in control of my body & mind.

My food weakness has always been the carbs. I am a Pizza lover. I decided that I can still have the pizza. I treat myself every Friday at lunch to the Large slice of pizza from Costco, but I cut it in half before starting to eat it and give one half away to one of my guy co-workers. I usually eat a fruit or salad with it that fills me up. Just last night I ordered pizza to be delivered for hubby and I made myself a salad and had 3 bites of a slice of pizza. I did not want any more. This is such a big step for me. I have eaten so much chicken that I feel like I cluck when I walk.

I hung my Tommy Hilfiger skinny jeans on the back of my closet door to look at and I hope to be in them and able to breath in them soon!

Great weekend without pictures

You will need to use your imagination until I replace my broken camera. This weekend was filled with grand-daughter, Abby fun. She spent the night on Saturday and we made her first gingerbread house. Well, we cheated a little by getting one already built at Costco, so all we had to do is decorate it. I have built a few kits in my time and this was the best kit for the money. It even came with a tree and extras. Abby is a very early riser, so at 5 am. Sunday morning she was up and ready for scrambled eggs. She wanted to take a bath and put her pretty dress on for church. We had plenty of time to play before getting ready for church. Abby told us that she doesn't want to be a doctor like her daddy wants her to be. She wants to be a princess. She was very serious about this. She also told her Grampa Not to eat her gingerbread house. We laughed, we played, we had a great time of making memories.

# 5 weigh in

I had a great week in spite of having pumpkin and apple pie around. I can honestly say that I didn't overeat on Thanksgiving and only had half pieces of pie instead of a whole piece. I have been weighing on different scales and they all weigh differently. I like my weight watchers digital scale the best because they say I have lost total 7 lbs. since starting. I had my weigh in and measuring at Curves this morning since joining 5 weeks ago. I have lost 8.50 inches and .50% body fat and they show me as losing only 3 lbs. Curves scale is like the doctor scale, always weigh you heavier. I am by no means discouraged. I know I have done very well with my eating and working out in spite of having bronchitis 2 times since starting. I have totally cut out the night eating. I still have the determination to get healthy. I found that the best time for me to go workout is 6 am. instead of after work. I also have my treadmill at the foot of my bed. I am starting to get my waist back that I haven't been able to find for a while. It's a great feeling.

25 days til Christmas....Let's talk

I woke up this morning and couldn't believe it is already December 1st. It just doesn't seem like another Christmas is soon approaching. I did decorate my house this past weekend to get a jump on things. As a family, we all talked about giving Less gifts. The question that is asked of me is always "what should I get so and so"? I never know how to respond.
I can't believe my Son, who was always the King of lists of wants for Christmas told me NOT to buy him or my daughter-in-law any gifts because they did not need anything and they realize how tight the economy has been for everyone. They want us to only give to the kids. He made me promise that I would stick to this rule. I DID promise him. The only gift that I want is a framed picture of my kids and grand kids. I guess the older you get, the less you want or need. Pictures mean so much to me.
I am trying to plan activities this month and make memories with my grand kids. I am going to make a gingerbread house with Abby. I already made memories with the boys last year by making one. Next year Ivy and Jack will be old enough to help make one. We also like to go see movies and eat popcorn. We are planning a trip to Chicago for the whole family to go to the museum and see the Christmas trees from around the world.
I really don't want to focus so much on the shopping and wrapping this season. I want to give more of myself and help people in need. I feel the need to visit at the local nursing homes and just give a smile and hug to the lonely.
Let's have a hopeful 25 days of Christmas in spite of the economy. Homemade gifts are great!We have each other, and that's all that matters!