Bootcamp Results

Today was an amazing day. I realized that I really CAN do anything I put my mind to.
I felt like SUPERWOMAN!
It started off when I made the decision that today would be the day that I organized our upstairs/Chad's office. I mean, we have lived here 6 months and there were still boxes that had not been unpacked. Our treadmill is also upstairs and the mess has been bothering me while I run.
BEFORE... AFTER!!!And I did all of this during Summer's one and only nap. Trust me I was running up and down the stairs hoping that when I came down I wouldn't hear a little voice calling for my time.

Summer was such an angel today. When I went to get her this morning she had a paci in her mouth. This is a girl who doesn't take a pacifier or any other soother so it was a big surprise.

She practiced her walking and can connect about 2-4 steps. This is what it looks like.


And for the BIG BOOTCAMP RESULTS!
My strict meal plan (which I am adopting as normal) plus a hearty workout 3 times a week and homework 6 times a week has allowed me to drop 9 lbs!
I have lost 2 inches at my waist and 1 inch at my hips!
My total body fat has lowered 2% points!
I am very pleased with my results and I am so thankful for the discipline I have learned through this experience. On my own I would have struggled for months to get these dramatic results. I understand the fundamentals that I must abide by in order to continue my weight loss as well as developing a plan to maintain my goal weight.
Yeah Me!
Since it was our last night we had fitness contests between me and my partner (a guy). He beat me in the running and bicep curls but I won the push up and sit up contests...and I raised my hands high with my mouth wide open with joy and said "I'm a winner!"
ME BEFORE BOOTCAMP...
ME AFTER BOOTCAMP... trust me-there is a difference

One more day

Tomorrow is my last day of Xtreme Bootcamp. I will get weighed and have my body fat measured. I am SO excited to get the results even though I can already feel a difference.

I put on my semi-retired pants yesterday and they fit with NO muffin top! My plan is to continue with the meal plan as I am currently eating under 1300 calories which will give me a little wiggle room to add a glass of wine every once in a while (no alcohol during bootcamp). I have taken up running and will continue that daily.

Oh, and it turns out that Sampson, our big dog, has a cold. That is good that it wasn't something worse. They won't give him antibiotics unless his cough gets worse.

Summer is into EVERYTHING now! I allow her get into the cabinet with the pans so she can have one safe fun place to explore however, seriously,I place the pots and pans back in the cabinet, pick up toys and make my way back to the kitchen and the pans are out again!

PLUS, she has decided that one nap is enough for her. Hello, I thought Mommy got to make that decision and I can tell you I am NOT ready. Today I took an hour nap and Summer cried in her crib for the whole hour. Once I was up I was refreshed and ready to play again but it was necessary. Playing is draining, you know?

**I can tell that some of you are stressed out that I let her cry for 1 hour. She was safe and supposed to be napping herself so I don't feel bad about it. Period.

This morning she got to my glass of water on the nightstand. Notice she is soaking wet but happy as can be!

She is so close to walking. Today she took a few steps at different times. She practices by pushing her bike around.
And this picture I just thought portrayed her fun personality.

Unloading my mind

Alright...seems as if I have all of these thoughts that I haven't been able to share because everytime I do my little shadow comes over and opens my desk drawers and starts to pull out and tear important information...and when her eyes close I rush around doing all things impossible while those eyes are open.

So here is my list of things I have been meaning to tell you...

• Our big buddy, Sampson, is having health issues. We rushed him to the animal hospital Sunday night thinking he might have bloat but turned out not. He seems back to normal but something, probably major, is wrong with him.
• Summer is going through a MAJOR clingy stage. She literally melts into the floor when you put her down. It makes me feel like a bad mother when others observe this as "I caused this problem."
• I stopped using mousse and aerosal hairspray and my thin hair seems fuller. I have used those products for oh, half my life.
• I have a urge to train for a 1/2 marathon after hearing of so many people I know running one in Nashville this past weekend. I tried to run 3 miles yesterday and fell short at 2.2.
• Summer is wearing Christmas pajamas in April.
• I have started using Cetaphil face wash and really like it. A esthetician told me it was the best store bought product because of its mild ph levels (or something like that).
• The post office offers Abstract Expressionists Stamps which I think are SO cool. Most of you will see one from me soon.
• The JCREW warehouse is having another major sale this weekend if anyone wants me to look for something send me your clothing type, size and color and I will search. Everything is under $20.
• I am terrible at geography. I blame it on my high school but I guess I could have paid more attention...nah, it was probably the teacher!
• I rarely ever iron and that plays a factor into what I buy and wear.
• Happy Anniversary Leslie and Jeff!
• Happy Birthday Bud!!

Ok, I think that gets alot of my mind.
Here are some pictures

"Why does Mommy keep putting all my stuff in here?"


This is Summer's BUSTED face. Let me show you what I mean...

BUSTED!

and BUSTED again!

Jana Marie_31 years

Happy Birthday to me!

Last year was my BIG 30 (plus I was 8 months pregnant and a bridesmaid in Leslie's wedding). This year I am way more low key. Turning 31 really isn't a big deal for me but I did enjoy a good reason to do everything MY way for the day.

Here I am with my new Take Out Menu Box! I love things like this.

Chad and Summer treated me to a Birthday Breakfast at Cracker Barrel and a Birthday Sundae at TCBY (my one splurge).

This morning Summer had SO much fun getting into a makeup bag. She pulled a lipstick container apart (then I quickly came to the rescue) and after that she was desperately trying to pull everything apart; tube of mascara, lotion bottle, face wash. Let's pray she doesn't learn to twist anytime soon.

I received so many sweet birthday wishes and I am so thankful to have great friends and family!

Bootcamp Update: I am no longer afraid of what I will do after Bootcamp ends! I feel that I have built a strong foundation of diet and exercise over the past 3 weeks that I can keep it up. Relief!! I even worked out on my birthday and felt good about it.

Oh, Summer got a cold this past week and it went into her ears. Turns out she has a double ear infection but is acting like a total trooper.

Here she is on the day she was diagnosed. You wouldn't even know anything was hurting. Gramma was pulling her down the street in her very little wagon.

Summer Marie_11 months

ANOTHER month has passed and my sugar love is growing and developing.

It has been really neat to have all of Summer's monthly photos to review back over however at this age taking a photo really isn't easy.

This was the first and only photo where the sign is legible and Summer is looking in my direction. It would have been too much to ask for a smile, obviously.One millisecond later...sign is down
And then...she waves it around mocking me!
And she is over the chair. It is hard to be a photographer and a safety net at the same time.
Mom this photoshoot is so lame.

Summer CAN...

• get to a standing position without pulling up on anything (strong quads)
• wave
• turn on/off light switch
• reach just about anything
• clear a table in seconds
• she has taken a step but I would not call it walking by any means

Summer LOVES...

• The tv remote
• our cell phones
• Sampson & Lucy
• eating your food
• organizing the kitchen cabinets
• being attached to Mommy's hip
• sticking her hand into the Puffs container to get her own treats

She has 6 teeth (2 bottom and 4 top).

She wears 12 month size clothes.

She does not wear shoes or socks (or if she does they come off immediately).

She has enough hair to keep a bow in.

She loves attention from strangers but acts shy when they smile at her.

She is loved by SO many friends and family!

Thanks

Pop Quiz

Summer & Sampson!

Yall stop playing for a second because Mommy is about to give you a pop quiz!
It is about healthy food options. Are you ready for the question?

Ok,

Which option is healthier?

7-Grain (Whole Grain) Bread OR Mulit-Grain (Whole Grain) Tortilla

Talk it over with Sampson and yall tell me your answer.

If you said the 7-Grain bread like Summer & Sampson, then you are...WRONG!

**Neither of them can read yet so I'll cut them some slack**

Yall go back to playing and Mommy will bore the readers with the details of why the tortilla is better. By the way, we call this game-climb over the big black log.

To my surprise, the multi-grain tortilla has 50% less calories, 50% less sodium, 4X less Sugar (wow) and double the Fiber! And it has more surface space meaning you feel like you are eating more. And to top it off, it even is a larger serving size by 1g.

I am going to try a Spaghetti Squash recipe this week which I am excited about. Since I can't have carbs for dinner I will substitute the squash as the noodles. I have never cooked spaghetti squash but I hear it comes out looking like noodles. I'll keep you posted.

If you own a Flip...

I must share with yall my great experience with Pure Digital, makers of The Flip camcorder, this week. I got the Flip UltraHD last year for my birthday (11 months ago) and while we were in the Caribbean it decided that it wouldn't power on. Once I got back home I changed the batteries and it still wouldn't work. In addition, my computer wasn't recognizing it when it was plugged into the USB port. I emailed Pure Digital and told them the problem they responded with a solution. That didn't work so they told me a number to call. I spoke with ONE representative who walked me through some troubleshooting for no longer than 15 minutes and then she deemed the camcorder defective and told me they would REPLACE it! I popped the old one in the mail and am praying Summer doesn't start walking before the new one arrives.
For REAL! Wow, I haven't had a positive customer service experience like that in a long time.
Sidenote: I am still boycotting Bed Bath & Beyond from 7 years ago and I really don't like to shop at GAP (except baby/maternity clothes) because of poor customer service experiences.

Meanwhile...my cutie patootie is quite drooly
And her favorite cabinet to get into is the ONE without a lock full of cleaners...I rigged it with a rubberband but she seemed to figure that out pretty quick. Yes, I have the childproof locks to put on but I just haven't gotten around to screwing them in. She has to be quick as the rubber band pulls the door back to the closed position. It took her a few tries to get this down but she is determined!
Oh NO! I didn't know Mommy was watching me!

BOOTCAMP UPDATE:

End of week 2 and I feel strong and thinner! I can now fit into the jean capris that I bought blindly (without trying on) at the JCREW warehouse sale for $5! Granted they are my current size but when I got home it turned out they were too tight for public view.

I am SO encouraged by Jen's successful completion of her 4 week bootcamp in Birmingham!

Way to go Jen! Surely this won't embarass her...she lost 5.75% body fat in 4 weeks! I think that is a major transformation and I hope her sprained ankle heals so she can start her 2nd month. That's right...she is so dedicated she has signed up for another month. If you are in B'ham and want to try bootcamp let me know and I will put yall in touch.

Weekend Photos

Fun this weekend
A picture says a thousand words
Busted in the cabinets!
Push me higher

The Thinking Tongue

Ever since Papa rolled into town my sweet little cutie pie

has developed a "thinking tongue!"

How do I get off this chair? I think and think and think and think and suddenly I know! (no that's not Summer that's Pinky Dinky Do-funny only to me)

Ok, so in Papa's defense he didn't train her to stick her tongue out however it is a unintentional habit that he does and she must have picked up on that.

BOOTCAMP UPDATE:
I feel skinny folks!
And I have to give a shout out to my wonderful husband, Chad, who is taking over Summer's nighttime feeding, bathing and bedtime 3 nights a week for the next 4 weeks.
I realize that feeling skinny and looking skinny are not related however it feels good. My tummy isn't hanging out as much and my sore muscles make me feel strong! (yeah-flex your muscles to that!). I am going to post my homework assignments for yall but mostly for Jen and Rachel who are both doing bootcamp in their different cities.


Days 1,3,5

• 30 sec jumping jacks
• 15 sit-ups
• 30 sec run in place
• 15 push ups (not using knees just bend your arms as much as you can)
• 30 sec butt kicks
• 25 crunches
• REPEAT 3 times with NO down time in between.

Days 2,4,6

• 45 sec run in place
• 20 front lunges
• 30 sec jumping jacks
• 20 reverse lunges
• 5 squat thrusts
• REPEAT 3 times with NO down time in between

I thought the second set of exercises (2,4,6) were going to be easier but let me tell you that a jumping jack had never been harder immediately after doing 20 lunges...try it out and see for yourself.

Meal plan - folks I have cheated only once...and guess what it was - Brown rice for dinner last night! That's right, brown rice...not really considered cheating as I can have it but just not at dinner time. It turns out it wasn't that satisfying and so I won't be tempted to do that again. The guilt of "cheating" wasn't worth it.

Feedback - tell me how yall are doing? I know some of you are eating right and exercising. Jen, you are 2 weeks ahead-are you skinny yet? Rachel-how was your first bootcamp?



Oh, one more thing. I volunteered for the Junior League consignment shop yesterday (great steals by the way) and met this nice lady who was shopping. She said she was "traveling" (I am pretty sure she doesn't have a home) and she was looking for a change of clothes. She picked up these amazing jeans that typically sell for $200 and in perfect condition. At first I was like, dang, I thought I picked up all the great stuff before the store opened. She shopped for a while and then wanted me to help her select what to get. The criteria she wanted me to decide on was what would dry the fastest. She didn't care about fit or color or name brands, simply what would dry overnight. I don't want to put pity on her because I don't think that is right. I simply wanted to interact with her like I would-YOU. So I said, let me see and we went around the store trying to find lightweight pants that were made of a quick dry material...and we did.


Remember next time you see someone less fortunate than you to interact with them like you would one of your friends.
PS - I bought those jeans for skinny Jen!

Bootcamp and Baby

Bootcamp Day 2

Today was the first day of eating "on plan." For those of you who are curious what that means, here is what I ate today.

Breakfast - 2 scrambled eggs with green onion and 1 pc wheat toast

Snack - apple with a small spoon of peanut butter

lunch - salad topped with 4 oz roasted chicken and a pc of wheat breadSnack - apple with small spoon of peanut butter

Dinner - salad topped with 4 oz baked tilapia, salsa, sour cream and small amount of cheese (no carbs-ouch)

And 1 gallon of water

I haven't felt hungry today. Tonight's bootcamp consisted of more cardio. We started out running and seems like we didn't stop the entire 45 minutes. I bet I will be sore tomorrow. Speaking of, the instructor offered me a free class tomorrow as she only has 1 person on Wednesday. If I can schedule it with Summer and Chad I am all in.

Here is what Summer did today. I just love seeing her in warm weather clothes. Last year she was an infant and I kept her covered so this is the first time she is exposing those arms and legs.

Standing and pulling things out of her wagon.
Crawling in and over the stool...and by the way she crawls all over Sampson and he just lays there undisturbed (Lucy would never allow that).
She's located the photographer..."Hey, I didn't say you could take pictures of me!"
At least tell me, so I can SMILE. Yes, this is a smile. These days she turns that chin up and smiles with pride.
She has recently shown affection for her doll, Jaime. Summer doesn't personally use a pacifier but she DOES like to suck on Jamie's...go figure.

I am so glad to be back blogging again.

Off to do my exercise homework and shower.

Xtreme Boot Camp

I am SO pumped UP!

Wahoo I am motivated to give my all at the workouts and follow the eating plan over the next 4 weeks to hopefully push the reset button on my body. Our class is small less than 5 people and it will really be up to me to push myself. I am headed to the grocery store tomorrow to stock up on eggs, chicken, fish, light wheat bread and produce.

Here are the eating rules:

NO alcohol

NO sodas

NO fried foods

NO white rice-pasta-bread, cakes or sweets

NO food 4 hours before bedtime

Drink 1 gallon of water each day

We have a journal that we have to write everything we eat in AND we have exercise homework(6 days a week). I am off to do my homework and shower.

Jana BEFORE

And why not add a few pictures of Summer from today. To me she looks so grown up in these photos. We were outside for a walk and she got a little hot (but covered in sunscreen) which is why she is rosy. Plus I let her hold her water cup and she played with it all over her outfit.

Easter 2010

Happy Easter to everyone!

We had Papa and Grammy up to visit for the weekend and enjoyed the sunny 80 degree weather outside. I'll let the photos tell the story of what we did.

12Bones BBQ (yummy bbq and you eat outside on picnic tables by the river)

Photo session along the river outside of the bbq joint

Biltmore Estate, Antler Hill Farm (Summer is driving the wagon)

Biltmore Estate, Petting ZooBiltmore Estate, Conservatory

Easter morning photo shoot (Mimi smocked Summer's Easter dress)

Farewell photo from Cracker Barrel
Summer's favorite drawer to pull open and emtpy
In other news...I am starting Xtreme Transformations Bootcamp TONIGHT! My sister-in-law, Jen, is on week 3 of a 4 week program in Birmingham. Rumor has it she has to wear a nametag because her body is so transformed noone recognizes her! This is what I asked for from my lovely husband for my birthday this month and of course, he gave it to me. I am pumped! It is 3 nights a week for 4 weeks. The waiver says that I might feel faint, dizzy and nauseus...who could ask for a BETTER birthday present! My hope is that I will lose 10 pounds and be able to fit into all my pre prego clothes.

Stay tuned for my post workout post.