Back 2 School

One week down and all is well.

Jared loves his new teacher and had a great first week. He said he has made a lot of new friends in his class which is good because he was afraid no one would like him. Mrs. Stoddard is great and I think exactly what Jared needs.

Kaylee was so excited to be in Mrs. Ply's class. Ren had her for two years and just loved her. Kaylee is a little sad that her best friend is moving to another school but oddly enough, the move will mean Kaycee will actually live closer so Kaylee will be able to ride her bike to Kaycee's house.

Ren is doing well in Jr. High. It is so crazy to have a kid in Jr. High. He says he likes about half of his teachers but I know he will work hard in all of his classes. Getting to and from his locker and back to class is proving to be a bit of a challenge but I think he is getting it down. At least he's not paranoid like me, I just carried my whole locker around with me in my backpack so I would never be late. I'm surprised my back survived it. :)

As for my new class, they are wonderful. How did I get so lucky? Two amazing classes in two years. They sure do make my job easy.

100 Things to Do!

I saw this on a blog with amazing card ideas and decided to post it rather than make a card of my own. The idea is to copy & paste it into your blog, then highlight the things you have done. The items in bold are things I’ve done in my life.
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band(if playing the xylophone in 5th grade counts)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain(not a very big one)
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped (I wish)
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (no-but I've been to the island)
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked — no way!
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping(this is just between you and me right?)
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied(just not at the moment)
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant(missionaries at Wendy's I know, I am so generous)
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted(I'm counting the cartoonist at Trolley Square)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris(It was closed, can you believe that?)
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie(but Rod has, check him out in Three O-clock High)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies(I sure have bought a lot)
62. Gone whale watching
63. Gotten flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check – why’d they have to put an embarrassing one on here?
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt(badly)
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades – just drove over them
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper(thank you Drake Hogestyn of Days of Our Lives)
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life(I told Ren to stop before he rode his bike in front of a car)
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous(never as great as you think it would be)
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake(Eeew Gross!)
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
Please feel free to play along and let me know. I’d love to see your list.

A Very Special 4th.

Today was not only Independence Day, it was also my Dad's 70th birthday! He is the greatest dad and we all love him so much. Happy Birthday Dad.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Our Trip to NYC

Rod and I had a great time in New York. We didn't really have a plan so we just went where we felt like when we felt like it. Here are just a few pictures of the trip.

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Wishing a very Happy Birthday to the one who started my adventure as a mom.

I love you Ren!

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Great Deal!

I got a great deal on this Kraft Salad Dressing. Wal Mart is selling it for $1.58 and after using a coupon for $1.50 off each one, I ended up getting 5 bottles for $.08 each. That was pretty cool, especially since that was all I bought at Wal Mart. My one dollar bill bought 80 ounces of salad dressing and I got change!

Rod was even impressed by this one.

OK, I really enjoy making my own, custom background and headers but seriously, 2 hours? What is worng with me?
A million people better look at this new background and love it or I think I will tear my hair out!

So, I come home from work to see a note on the garage door which says...

Kids,

Please unload then load the dishwasher and clean your lockers before Mom gets home.

Thanks,

Dad

Pretty sweet huh?

Well, I come in and Ren and Kaylee are hard at work but Jared has, of course, done nothing. So, I tell him to at least get his locker cleaned out. After about 15 minutes of cleaning this is how I found him.

My Baby Turned 7 Today!

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Grocery Smarts "ROCKS"!

Since I went to the enrichment night class on using Coupons in February, I have been saving my coupons and just waiting for that first great shopping trip. I saved about $50.00 the first time I used my multiple coupons but tonight was a whole different experience.

Kaylee and I went to Albertson's armed with nothing but a "Grocery Smarts" list and a pile of coupons, and came out with $533.50 worth of groceries for about $210.00. That was a savings of about $323.00. We also got 4 free tickets to see the new Star Trek movie so that puts our total savings at about $350.00. (Yes, we are planning on seeing the Star Trek Movie :D)

This picture has examples of the things I got. Just multiply everything by about 7 and that would be my total haul.

I was most excited about all the Healthy Choice meals and the Smart Pop popcorn I got. I will be eating some really nice, hot lunches and my favorite snack for at least a month.

And hey, if anyone out there needs some cereal, I'm your gal.

Before and After

Rod keeps asking me when I am going to put my latest picture on the blog so here it is.

I have at last reached my goal of losing 30 pounds and I would be thrilled to stay this size forever!!!

I want to thank all of you for all of your support and kind words, that sounds like my dog just died, but it really does help when you know your friends are behind you.

Now the real challenge starts. Keeping it off. Hopefully you will never have to be put through the "Incredible Shrinking Angie" saga again! :)

Sunny California Day

Here we are on our first day of sunshine in Northern California. The kids are having so much fun with their cousins Hannah, Josh, Jackson, and Brady.

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Kaylee's Big Day

Oh my goodness. It has been so long since I posted anything that I almost forgot my password and user name!!!
Today is my Kaylee Rose's big 10! She has been the sparkle in our lives for these last 10 years and we love her so much.
Happy Birthday Sweetie!

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Our Day at the Environmental Center

This was an interesting trip. After going to the center with the 6th Grade, I couldn't wait to take my family up there and share all the fun and the amazing surroundings. As usual, I built it up in my mind way too much and was quickly brought back to reality by my kids and other circumstances.
First, Rod got a new camera for the trip just that morning and of course, when we arrived at the Environmental Center, there were problems with it. He (with my permission) went back down to town to fix it.
The whining started on the hike up to the lodge and it didn't really stop until we got to the top of the ridge in our snowshoes and I just lost it. I was all ready to pull out my camera when I realized this was not a moment I wanted to have a permanent memory of. I told the kids we were hiking down and then leaving. This is when the real crying started (me and the kids). So, I laid it out for them, either stop whining and crying and start being nice to one another or, it was back to the van!
For the first time ever, my emotional blackmail actually worked on my kids. AMAZING! Not only did they stop whining, they were actually helping each other and laughing. If only I could capture that moment and bottle it up for a rainy day.
The rest of the day was very nice. Rod returned with the new camera (still didn't work) and we got the size one ski boots for Jared. The kids all liked the cross country skiing but Jared was a natural. I am so sad we weren't able to get more pictures or any video of that.
So as Rod always says "To make a short story long" this ended up to be a pretty good day. The fact that I didn't delete every photo of our snowshoe hike it the real proof!

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Rod and the kids decided to let Sabrina have a little fun in the snow. She looks like she enjoyed it so much, I just had to share these photos Rod took.

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Something to Post!

One of my cute students and I on our skis. (starting hour 3)

Hey Look! I found something other than my weight to talk about.

A couple of weeks ago we took our 6th graders to The Environmental Center. It was such a great field trip, well other than almost loosing one of my girls to hypothermia (not kidding).

The kids got to do four activities: Cross Country Skiing, Snow Shoeing, Boondoggles, and making Bread on a Stick over an open fire. I really wanted to try everything (OK, maybe not boondoggles although I could sell them door to door to earn money for college).

What actually ended up happening was I skied for 2 50 minute rotations, ate lunch, snowshoed for one rotation, and then ended up skiing for the rest of the day (about 2 more hours). That's right! I was on cross country skis for almost 4 hours.

I really didn't plan this, and I was really sad about missing the bread!

The best part was, by morning, I could still walk. Amazing, I know!

So, on President's day the school district has an employee day at the center. They do all of the same activities, minus the bread , so I am dragging my family up there for the day. I honestly can't wait.

Who knew I would have to wait until I was almost 40 to truly enjoy the Environmental Center?

So Sorry!

I promised myself that I wouldn't turn this blog into a "Let's watch Angie's Diet" site but, here we go again.
It is going really well. I have my forth weigh in tomorrow and I think it should be another good one. The only bad thing about this is I could just kick myself for not doing it sooner.
Oh, and there is another awesome thing. I was trying on some of my old jeans and not only did a couple of pairs fit (sort of ) but one pair had six dollars in the pocket! I'm telling you, this diet is really paying off. (see the pictures to the right)
Again, sorry about the lack of any other posts. I wanted to get some shots of the kids and me making their Valentines (they are super cute by the way) but I was too busy cutting, pasting, and wrapping to take any pictures. Plus my kitchen is a mess and I would be way too humiliated to put that out there for all the world to see.

Progress

If you didn't already notice my Good Scale cheer, I have lost some weight over the last two weeks. Truth be told, I kind of had a bit of a "eat what ever I want" celebration the three days before I weighed in for the first time Monday. I probably gained a couple of pound thanks to that but after the weigh in I was committed. Something about paying good money, standing on a scale, and being accountable to all of you makes me really want to do this.

The best part is, I have been feeling so good. I'm not hungry and I haven't felt "icky" since I started eating right.

Anyway, I don't know if you can really see a difference but I am looking forward to making one of those slide shows where you can see my 30 something pounds melting away. I'll be just like those pregnant ladies who show their bellies growing only in reverse.

Clothes on the Line

Today in Relief Society Jan Shaw shared this poem and it made me think about our blogs. Our clothes may not be out, but I feel like blogging is the new way of letting the people we care about know what is going on in our lives. So thank you for having a look at my clean laundry every now and then.

The Clothesline Said So Much

A clothesline was a news forecast

To neighbors passing by.

There were no secrets you could keep

When clothes were hung to dry.

It also was a friendly link

For neighbors always knew

If company had stopped on by

To spend a night or two.

For then you'd see the fancy sheets

And towels on the line;

You'd see the company table clothes

With intricate design.

The line announced a baby's birth

To folks who lived inside

As brand new infant clothes were hung

So carefully with pride.

The ages of the children could

So readily be known

By watching how the sizes changed

You'd know how much they'd grown.

It also told when illness struck,

As extra sheets were hung;

Then nightclothes, and a bathrobe, too,

Haphazardly were strung.

It said, "Gone on vacation now"

When lines hung limp and bare.

It told, "We're back!" when full lines sagged

With not an inch to spare.

New folks in town were scorned upon

If wash was dingy gray,

As neighbors raised their brows,

And looked disgustedly away.

But clotheslines now are of the past

For dryers make work less.

Now what goes on inside a home

Is anybody's guess.

I really miss that way of life.

It was a friendly sign

When neighbors knew each other best

By what hung on the line!

Author: Marilyn K. Walker

The Dreaded "BEFORE" Picture

Well, here it is, the before picture. I figured since it's Fast Sunday this would be a good time to officially start documenting my (say a little pray for me) weight loss.

I hate looking at pictures of myself. I promise you I do not look this bad in the mirror!

Also included in this post is my first "after" picture. Sure it was taken just 10 seconds later but what a difference! Isn't it amazing what a smile, a flip of the hair, and a sideways pose can do for one's figure.

I have always loved the way they do that in all those diet ads, like we are all too naive to figure out what's going on there. Still, until I'm down at least 10 pounds, I will be holding all conversations looking over my shoulder. :)

Resolutions

I am not big on resolutions but there are a couple of things I was planning on doing this year so I might as well make them public knowledge. This way everyone I know can remind me when I start messing up. :)

My first resolution is to take more pictures. I look at all of your wonderful blogs and think "Hey, we did that too but, I didn't get a single photo of it." This post is a great example of how boring a post is without a little photographic evidence to back it up. Anyway, the camera must come out! Now that I have a forum for all those great pictures, I have no excuse.

Second, as usual, I need to loose 30 pounds. Thank you, thank you I know... I look just fine, I don't need to loose that much, blah blah blah... everyone is way too nice about this. I am starting a Weight Watchers at Work class January 12th (every Monday at 4:00 pm @ Majestic Elementary if anyone is interested). Weight Watchers works for me, if I really follow the program, so I am jumping in 100%. Wish me luck with this one!

My last resolution involves both of the first two. I plan to blog my weight loss. Now don't worry, I will only occasionally tell you everything I have eaten that day and how many points I've gone through ;). My actually plan is to take a picture every 2 weeks and then post them on the blog. With the whole world (or at least all of you) watching, I think I will be a little more careful about what I put in my pie hole. Oops, I mean carrot hole.