30-day shred...30 days in...

So I posted a while back that exercising was one of my goals for this year. Well I'm done with my initial goal, which was to complete Jillian Michael's 30-day Shred DVD (meaning doing it for 30 days n a row). I'm obviously going to keep it up, but not EVERY single day like I have been doing. :) So far...

What I like:
*$8 for the DVD and $20 total for the weights. Not too bad as opposed to a gym membership.
*I LOVE that I can do it in 25 minutes. Granted it's intense, but I like being done, showered, and dressed all by the time the kids get up each morning.
*I like not having to look presentable since I'm doing it at home. You should see the ratty clothes I work out in! :)
*My mom asked if I feel stronger and my initial response was no. I really can't tell a difference in my daily life. But it is neat to see how far I've come with the DVD, meaning exercises I couldn't do at the beginning which I now have no problem doing.
*I can tell a difference in how my clothes fit.
*The feeling of accomplishment I have after each workout.
*Weight maintenance aside, I feel good knowing I'm doing something that is good for my heart, bones, muscles, etc.

What I don't like:
*Getting up at 5:15 is rough sometimes when I'm all cozy in my bed.
*The feeling of wanting to die during the workout. :)
*I had about 5 pounds to lose from the Christmas eating days and only lost 3. But I imagine I gained muscle instead?? Not sure.
*Sometimes I think I will get tired of working out by myself. There is something more fun/motivating in doing it around other people.

So overall I'm glad I did it and would like to continue maybe 3 days a week as opposed to 7 :)

things to try...

Not the biggest Rice Krispies fan, but these seem like they would be fun to make with kids...

Inside Out Rice Krispie Chocolate Chip Cookies:



This is from a healthy dessert blog I like and these look like a fun and healthy kid treat:

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Cookies



I've always wanted Ramekins because I think it's fun to serve people in individual dishes. I've never made pot pie so this recipe is actually on our menu plan for Wednesday this week. I'm going to omit the crust around the bottom and just put it on top as well as try and cut down a little more on the butter to make it even more healthy (this is a lower fat version as it is).


Mini Chicken Pot Pies



Several food blogs that I like to check out have made yummy things with this Biscoff Spread stuff. I just saw it at WinCo yesterday, but didn't purchase any. At some point I would like to try it as it sounds really yummy...

our saturday

For Christmas I bought Chris the fee to a golf tournament with a friend of his. I had to pat myself on the back for a good gift (normally it's so hard for me to think of things to get him) because he was super excited. While he was gone today to the tournament, the kids and I didn't do anything extra special but we still had fun...

Breakfast at Panera



Park




Working on homework from speech class



Watching those little capsules that turn into sponge animals in hot water...very exciting for them!



Baked these little gems. Very unique and the perfect salty/sweet combo



Right now they are up doing "special upstairs time" to be followed by movie, dinner, and bed. Fun and low-key day :)

meals for the week

Monday: Tacos, veggies
(Costco has great pork that amounts to about $2.75 per whole family meal + the cost of tortillas, toppings, etc. I just plop the loin in the crockpot with a packet of onion soup mix)

Tuesday: Chicken Apple Gouda Hot Dogs, roasted potatoes (a.k.a. french fries for the kids!), veggies

Wednesday: Adults: Claim Jumper to-go (we have these gift cards that have to be used by Feb. 1) :)

Kids: Homemade pizza (I even snuck flaxseed in the dough and none were the wiser!), veggies

Thursday: Leftover tacos from Monday, veggies

Friday: Orange Chicken, brown rice, veggies

*I'm still looking for a good homemade granola bar recipe. I want it chewy (like those soft Quaker Oat ones), but not fall apart. I find it very hard to get just the right consistency.

*I found a snack that Chris just LOVES. Target has individual fat free yogurt that is very tasty. I buy the Honey Almond and combine it with 1/2 a banana and 1/4 cup Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal. It's a good sized snack and quite yummy.

*Need to get to Staters because Ambrosia apples (my new favorite over Fuji) are 99 cents a pound.

*This is how I now make oatmeal

movie review

One of the nights Kendall and I stayed at Chris' aunt's house I rented, "I Don't Know How She Does It". I think Sara Jessica Parker is a cute actress and overall it was fun to watch. Any mom could relate to a number of things in the movie and there were several really endearing parts to it.

I have one pretty big beef, but let me first give my disclaimer. There are moms that choose to work for a variety of reasons, need to work for financial reasons, or simply want to. There are moms that choose to stay home. Every family is different and every mom does what she feels is right for her family. Enough said. What was frustrating about the movie was that there was NOT ONE stay at home mom in the movie who was portrayed other than a snotty, lazy, judgmental, and condescending person. Not one.

What is interesting to me is that if the roles were reversed and the working moms were the ones who were portrayed as judgmental, prudish, etc., all hell would break loose. But for some reason it's okay to dump on stay at home moms. Granted, there are stay at home moms who probably typify what they portrayed in the movie. But to not have ANY character represent a normal, compassionate, non-judgmental stay at home mom who doesn't look down on others? Really???

Just my two cents.

*Yesterday the rain was BEGGING Chris and I to stay in all day in the nice warm house. But we knew the kiddos wouldn't last so we made ourselves venture out to the mall play area and Costco for lunch/groceries. While the kids played, I was very excited to finally find a purse and officially retire my mommy backpack. The best part? It was only $10 at JC Penny's!!! :)

It's not quite this bright of green in person :)


*Thanks for your advice on the grocery shopping. I think I've come up with a starting amount that I'm going to try and stick to weekly. I'll let you know when I've got a few weeks under my belt as to how it's going. :) Seeing as I'm a little sweet potato obsessed lately, I decided to factor in a bag of Sweet Potato Chips into our budget. I had a sample yesterday at Costco and FELL IN LOVE. :)




*Right now my entire body aches. Please don't get sick...please don't get sick...please...

groceries

I'm trying to purge our freezer and use up some stuff so I'm not spending money on groceries when I don't have to this week. So far we've polished off some take out pizza from New Years (that I froze) and Chalupa. I've tried a grocery budget in the past and let it slide after a couple of months. I REALLY want to try it again. I remember how free it felt to not feel like I as spending too much at one time because I knew that there was set total amount I couldn't go over. Not sure how that "free" feeling faded to the point that I gave up doing it.

I also want to try meal planning. Again, I tried it before and gave up after a couple lame attempts. I think my excuse was, "Well, but sometimes we go to Costco spare of the moment for dinner...or sometimes I have more leftovers than I thought so I don't need to use the ingredients I bought for Wednesday's meal". I know these are stupid excuses and that good planning would only help me spend less.

I've tried googleing the average that a family of four spends per month, but have yet to find it. I know this number varies as some families go organic (which would obviously up the overall bills). I know I could probably track our spending for a month, then go from there, but I'm a little impatient and want to start something NOW. :)

Any advice? Tips on how you do it????