Weight Loss Wednesday #8

Well, last night was weigh in day - and I stayed the same this week. I am OK with this, but am a bit disappointed that it wasn't a loss. But I only have myself to blame....and a certain someone who brought McDonald's over for lunch on Thursday. LOL So I did do a bit of cheating (biting without writing) this week. McD's, nachos at the movies on Monday (but they were so good), and a few other little things here and there.

This week I am vowing to keep on track and hopefully will see a decrease on the scale. This morning I did 28mins aerobic exercise on the Wii Fit. It was fast to tell me that it had been 58 days since my last visit...but I was 4.4lbs down...so that was good to see. I brought the kids down with me and we all did it together. (It is rainy today, so this gave the kids some gross motor activities) The kids loved pretending to hula hoop and enjoyed running on the spot along with me. For those who haven't tried the island lap run...this is a 12min run...was hard work for this little chubster - LOL - but I did it. And you know what got me through it - HoneyPie's words of encouragement as I said "Oh my god, this is long"...she kept telling me "Way to go, Mom....you can do it....looking good...Yay, Mommy - you're almost there". She was amazing - what a little cheerleader.

And I will be her loudest cheerleader tomorrow night as she plays her first soccer game. We signed her up for the MicroSoccer League (4&5s) and she (and we) are super excited!!!!

Off to make lunch for the kiddies - fish & chips...but I will be eating a Lean Cuisine. YUM!
Ciao for now,
Hollie

Whoo Hoo, Kris Allen!

Congratulations to Kris Allen...2009 American Idol Winner



What a shocker on last night's American Idol. I fully expected Adam Lambert to win - he was the judges fave from day one. I was absolutely not a fan - I found his voice annoying and screechy, his performances were theatrical and always over the top...and when they announced that Kris Allen had won over him...I was shocked...as was Kris Allen, himself. He even said that Adam deserved to win.

I am a huge American Idol fan, and love right from the beginning to the end (unlike DH who only really loves the audition episodes, or so he says...I think he is a closet A.I. Lover hee hee). But, I admit I get kind of annoyed by the usually dragged out 2hr finale. But last night's was great! The performances, the duets...I thought it was awesome. Some of my fave moments were:



* Norman Gentle - he always makes me laugh
* Tatiana - that girl is insane
* Kris Allen and Keith Urban's duet
* Bikini Girl...when Ryan said "I was going to ask you what's new, but I think I already know" DH and I died...hilarious.
* Kara showing up Bikini Girl's singing (she was even worse than her audtion, I think) and then ripping open her dress. OMG! We had to watch it a few times. I am not a big fan of Kara but in that moment she was flippin' awesome!

So, now I wait until next January for American Idol 2010. And hope that Kris releases an amazing album and has huge success. I am pretty sure that the top 4, Alison, Danny (my #1), Adam and Kris (my #2) will all do quite well.

Off to make lunch for my kiddies,
Til next post...adios
~ Hollie

Weight Loss Wednesday #7

Well, I'm happy to say that even after a weekend of birthday parties with yummy cupcakes, neighbourhood breakfast with eggs and bacon and a BBQ with Burgers and Dairy Queen, I did pretty well this week. I lost 1.4lbs totaling 21.4 Whoo Hoo (a little celebrating on my part). Am hoping to keep on this losing path - summer is coming...which in turn means the dreaded "bathing suit". So, I have 9 weeks until our week away at the cottage. Bring on the 0pt soup and treadmill!!!!!

*****
So, American Idol finale tonight - we're taping it right now so we can zip through it in a bit. I am really hoping that screachy Adam Lambert doesn't win. I like Kris Allen, and as a friend mentioned earlier, I am hoping that all the fans who were voting for Danny Gokey will now vote for Kris and let him be the next American Idol. I went to adamlambert.org today and it had a large banner reading "2009 American Idol winner". Already celebrating his victory....which I really hope he does not get! GO KRIS ALLEN!!!!

*****
On another note:
While putting my kids to bed tonight, I hugged them that tiny bit tighter. Today, my heart is aching for a family in Woodstock, ON. For those who haven't heard about this heartbreaking story:
Victoria Stafford,8, went missing when she was walking home from school at the beginning of April. She was seen on a surveillance camera at a local high school walking with an unidentified woman. Originally, the police were not treating it as an abduction, hence the reason why an Amber Alert wasn't issued. A week into her disappearance, Oxford County Police decided that it was an abduction, but still did not issue an Amber Alert.

It was made known by the media this morning that they have made 2 arrests, a man and a woman, who are known to the Stafford family. The male has been charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of abduction, the female has been charged with abduction and accessory after the fact to murder. It is said that the female is known to Victoria's mother (there had been rumours that she was somehow involved).
A search has been formed in a rural farm area in Guelph - with information that sweet little Victoria has passed.
This whole story just breaks my heart - I cherish my children so much. My heart goes out to her family.

HUG YOUR KIDS A LITTLE TIGHTER TODAY

A Sad Moment at...IKEA? Huh?

This past Saturday, we went shopping at IKEA as we wanted to buy a new shelf for our landing.

It is super cute and now we just have to find some nice things to put in it. But that's not what this blog is about...

When we first went in, HoneyPie saw the play place and for the first time there were spaces available. So, we filled out the form and she put on her little numbered pinnie and off she went. Hardly a goodbye to DH, Budderoo and I. I watched her as we waited for the elevator...she sat down at the colouring table and began colouring a butterfly. We headed upstairs and started to shop, I got teary and said "I feel so sad dropping her off there".

She is growing up too fast! She will be starting JK this September and I know I'm going to be a mess her first day of school. I recently bought her The Imagination Movers Juice Box Heroes CD and there is a super sweet song called "First Day of School" There is a line that totally made me cry - it talks about how the boy had been there from 9 - 3, almost all day and it says something like, "You're waiting for me at the car, I really don't want to leave, but I really want to see your smile...you know I love to see your smile" (UGH! Just typing it is making me teary).

HoneyPie is so excited to start school, as I am for her. It will be really good for her. As I've been home with her since she was born, with only her recently attending a music class on Friday mornings, she hasn't really had any preschool/daycare experience, other than the daycare I run at home.

I know that she will be fine and will have a wonderful time in kindergarten. Mommy just needs to breath a little and enjoy this very special moment. My baby girl is growing up...

Will be back tomorrow for Weight Loss Wednesday...and probably a little American Idol talk. Who will win? Adam, I'm sure UGH!
Night,
Hollie

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Mom, I loved you yesterday, I love you tomorrow and everyday.
You were there for me my first day of school, to hold my hand and give me courage to go.
You listened to me when I needed to talk, you talked to me when I needed to listen.
You let me grow and learn from my own mistakes.
You never left my side when I was feeling down, I knew you would be there to pick me up.
I wish there was a way I could repay all the things you have done for me,
but there's nothing great enough to repay the greatest mother of all.

I wish I could tell you, Mom just how much you mean to me.
But there are no words to say
how much I admire you...
how much I appreciate you...
how much I thank you
for everything you've done.
I LOVE YOU, MOM! HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.!
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom .

MOMMY LOVES YOU, HONEYPIE & BUDDEROO! You are my everything and I couldn't imagine my life without you both. You are the reason the sun shines! xoxoxo

Weight Loss Wednesday #6.....and a little A.I.

Well, after quite a bit of indulging this weekend while away on my Mommy Day Away, I was a little nervous about tonight's weigh in. But...I was pleasantly surprised and quite happy with a 0.2 gain.

Not much else to blog about tonight! Although, I must say I was very surprised by tonight's elimination on American Idol. DH and I were totally not expecting Allison to go home. She has a great voice and is quite a little performer. For being only 17, she is really quite good!
I have to say Danny Gokey is my #1. I love his voice - he's done some great performances!

But, I tend to think that crappy Adam Lambert is going to win this season. DH and I cringe every time he performs, and are so annoyed by the judges kissing his ass every week. We do not like him at all! Oh well, I'm sure Danny will do well - being #1 doesn't always mean that they become superstars..some of the runner-ups have done better than the winners (i.e. Chris Daughtry - - HOT!)

Well, off to bed for me.
Nite Nite
~ Hollie

Mommy's Day Away

This Saturday, I had the opportunity to spend the day/night away with my friend, Kelly. We had been planning this for quite a while and we were so excited when Saturday morning finally got here.

She picked me up around 11am, and we headed down to Niagara Falls. Our first stop was over the border at the Miliary Outlet Mall. We had lunch at Applebee's (I had the Orange Chicken Bowl...it was fantastic).

{{Sidenote: When I was looking for this picture on the Applebee's website, it took me to the location in Niagara Falls which listed it as $19.49. I paid $10.49 in the states. Insane how much they mark things up in the Falls}}

We did quite a bit of shopping...all for the kids. I got HoneyPie and Budderoo some cute jammies and outfits for the summer from Carter's, and a couple short sets for Budderoo from Osh Kosh. I got these jammies for HoneyPie, she is wearing them right now and looks adorable!


From there, we checked into our hotel - Sheraton on the Falls- a nice room right on the corner of Clifton Hill, so we had a nice view of the park and the Falls. The beds were so comfy, we barely wanted to go and get dinner as we had became too relaxed while watching TV. We had dinner at the Fallsview Buffet at the hotel. It was good, but definitely not worth $34.95. After dinner, we walked up Clifton Hill a bit and got some munchies for our planned chick flick.

We rented Marley & Me and got in our jammies and each hopped into our super comfy bed (with the comfiest pillows ever). The movie was great...so sad. We both had dogs that were a big part of our family and some of the scenes hit really close to home.

We went to bed early (11:30pm) as we were just so excited to sleep in a bed, without being woken up by the kids through the night or early in the morning. Only to be woken up at 1:15am by the fire alarm. This went on for 45 minutes with intermittent PA announcements telling us to remain calm and in our rooms while they investigate. It turned out to be a false alarm, but getting back to sleep after was tough. We were SO awake for 45mins. We slept til 9, which for us is very unusual. Our kids are early risers. We laid around for a while before checking out at 10:30

Grabbed some breakfast and then did some more shopping at the Lundy's Lane outlets. We both bought a bunch of stuff for US at the Roots outlet. Our last stop was at the Coach store, where I found a super cute purple clutch. It was a great price.


Kelly dropped me off at about 130 and was told by Tim that Lauren was waiting for me to give her a kiss before nap. The look on her face when she saw me come into her room was just priceless. Almost made being away for the day all the more worth while. She gave me the biggest hug and told me how much she missed me.

Thanks, Kelly for suggesting we do this. It was a great way to spend some Mommy Time. Looking forward to next time already =)