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Wednesday, May 27, 2009

On the fence about Twitter

Tonight we had yet another showing on our house. I should be thrilled but I am not. I am getting ready to start charging admission. Make an offer or I will send you a bill in the mail for my time. Please I have goals to accomplish and these showings are crimping my style.

As I was driving home with LC and LP from my mothers house, I thought a lot about Twitter. To Twitter or not to Twitter - That is the question. I am not opposed to the idea of Twittering. In fact, I often enjoy reading tweets as they appear on some of my favorite blogs. But I am going to be honest, I have nothing to tweet about. So while my precious children watched a movie on their portable DVD player (gasp!), I played out in my mind what I might Tweet about...

Tweet: I went to the bathroom.
Tweet: People at work drive me crazy.
Tweet: I am at a meeting.
Tweet: I am at another meeting to talk about the last meeting.
Tweet: I am at a meeting to talk about the next meeting.
Tweet: I am at the next meeting.
Tweet: I have to go bathroom again. I am drinking a lot of water.
Tweet: I am on my way home.
Tweet: LC and LP wouldn't even let me go to the bathroom when I got in the door.
Tweet: Where has all of my privacy gone?
Tweet: LC and LP are both going to the bathroom.
Tweet, Tweet: I am now cleaning two butts (their butts please, not my buttS).

I am guessing that there just wouldn't be any interest in a play by play of my daily activities.

16 pairs of pants

I realized it was kind of boring to list out a long list of my goals for the week and then report back on Tuesday. So this week, I thought that I would write about one of my goals each day as I achieved success and Tuesdays would be reserved for my goal of losing 20lbs by age 30.

So last night after LP and LC went to bed, I thought that I would clean out my closet (operation simplify, organize). I quickly changed my mind. This is slightly embarrassing. Remember how I told you about my maximum size?

I counted the number of pants that I have that don’t fit. 16 pairs of pants in total…. And most of those are in my maximum size. I have a handful of pants that fit and I wear them every day.

Don’t laugh. Maybe you can relate.

Or maybe you are one of those annoying skinny people (it’s jealously not hatred). And it’s not that they are super small on me… just a little too tight for my liking especially when dealing with my Front Butt.

So I stopped with the closet project and decided to put that on-hold until I achieve 20 X 30.

Instead I re-opened the package that came in the mail and started my new “hobby”. I attempted to take a picture of it, but it was a challenge to get the right lighting. Maybe tonight.

So the next time, I want to snack on something naughty… I will remember the 16 pairs of pants that I would really like to wear. Nothing could taste so good that it would be worth squeezing into the same damn pants everyday.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Take It Off Tuesday!

Wow, what a week. The long holiday weekend did not do much for my weight loss... but I did lose 3.5lbs. Not bad. As for my other weekly goals, I would say overall mission accomplished.

1. Eat Healthy. Exercise. Reduce the Front Butt.
Week #1 Goals:

Drink Water = Done!
Exercise 4 time = Done! 1 rollerblade, 3 walk/runs.
Eat better = Define better? It was better but not great.


2. Simplify. Organize.

Organize photos = Done! But I didn't do well on getting photos saved digitally. Anyone have good ideas? (hint: fishing for my first commenter).

3. Financial Make-Over.

Eating out less = Success!

4. Reclaim the Flame.

Picked-up book. Happy Hubby.

5. Find outlets.

Package arrived. Opened it. It sat waiting for time.

Note to self: You gave too many goals. Yikes.

Monday, May 25, 2009

Memorial Weekend Recap

Smiles and I waited patiently in line for the car wash today behind a WWII vet. He took his time carefully cleaning his Buick. It looked like he was getting ready for a Memorial Day event all decked out in his Army cap.

Tom Brokaw coined the term, "The Greatest Generation" in his book to describe those who lived through the Great Depression, World War II and then went on to rebuild our country. Some commentators believe that Generation Y aka the Millennials share some of those same characteristics.... Described as civic-minded, high achievers and team oriented. According to the "experts", Smiles and I are on the front-end of this generation..... we sure have a lot to live up to.

So.... Enough of the history lesson. Memorial Day is a great reminder to me that I owe my freedom, life and everything else to many generations of Great Americans.

It also serves as a reminder to us all that greatness is within all of our reach. And greatness is defined in so many ways.

On a personal note, this was a life changing weekend for my family. My wonderful and loving niece became very very ill and was transported to the local Children's Hospital. She was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. Her life and our family's lives will be forever changed. Please keep her and my family in your thoughts and prayers.

Friday, May 22, 2009

The Motherhood Judges

Yesterday, I read a post over at Notes from the Trenches about how mothers are always judging other mothers. And it really got me thinking because...

Well, I never thought that I would be "one of those parents" that purchased a portable DVD player for the car.



But I did.

And I don't care.
And I love it.

Pure Evil.

All of the perfect mothers out there can snub their noses at me. You see this little portable DVD player means everything to me.

Don't worry, I am not showing them violent movies.

It saves our trips up to the lake. Smiles and I can have a conversation. A real conversation and .... I don't need to justify it.

Pure Bliss.




Wednesday, May 20, 2009

$450 = Gluttony

As I mentioned earlier, Smiles and I sat down to look at our spending for the past three months.
We were both shocked and a bit disgusted that we had spent on average $450 eating out.

Granted my expensive coffee addiction played into that... but I did not drink $450 worth of lattes. That is a freakin' lot of money and calories.

My grandma would be so disappointed in me. She grew up during the Great Depression.
She was thrify, resourceful and definetly not wasteful.

Let's be honest. This economy sucks. People are losing their jobs in record numbers. My retirement savings has dwindled to a mere fraction of what it once was, our house is priced low and is sitting on the market... and we spent $450 eating out!

I may sound like a negative nilly. I'm not trying to be. My redefining adventure is turning out to be an eye-opening experience. It's like my coffee addiction. First, you have to admit that there is a problem.

Good-bye Fast Food. Good-bye Chilis, Applebees, Chiptole, Pot Belly, (sniffle, sniffle).

Hello Brown Bag. And occasionally Starbucks. ;)

First step: Admit you have a problem.

Me: “Hi, my name is Redefined Mommy and I am addicted to Caribou/Starbucks”.

You: “Hi, Redefined Mommy”.

It all started in college. I was studying for a tough final with a few friends, and a one suggested that I try a latte (since they don’t taste that much like coffee). It was late and I was tired. I had a moment of weakness. I caved to stay awake. And thus the addiction started.

If we added it up, I wonder how much money I have spent since that fateful moment on over-priced coffee. Just ask Smiles – he would gladly attempt to calculate the damage.

Is there a support group for expensive coffee drinkers? I need to attend.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Take It Off Tuesday

Today marks the official start of Operation Remove Front Butt (click on Front Butt to read the post in which I tell the world that I have one).

Take it OFF Tuesday - Ahem, weight not clothing. Although technically it's clothing too because typically I do everything in my power to ensure that the scale nudges down.

I weighed in this morning, and in the interest of full partial disclosure I will share with you my weight loss goals. Honestly, it's a real stretch and the weight loss experts might shake their heads at me. It's 20lbs by 30 years. That gives me roughly 3 months to take off 20 lbs.

It was a scary sight this morning, and hopefully a number that I NEVER see again.

Monday, May 18, 2009

My first "Not Me!" Monday post. "Not Me" Monday was created by MckMama.
Click here to check out her blog.
I did not eat a donut and drink an expensive latte while writing a post about my goals of losing weight and cutting spending. You see what I did not say was that I was going to start chasing those goals down after I finished writing them.
I did not throw my back out while doing work at my parents' lake home and then proceed to Rollerblade 7 miles. I would never do something like that... I know my limits.
I did not eat a dropped cookie of the floor or wipe my child's nose with my hand. And no LC did not reach over and grab my hand to clear the boogers of his face... like I had done that before. Heck no, not me!!
And I mostly did not curse the person who looked at our house this week and proceeded to poop in our potty. I did not break out the Clorox to clean it up.
I am new to this so I am sure there are plenty of other things that I did not do this week.

The List

I spent a lot of time thinking about my list of “stuff” this past weekend. Complete with an overall goal and a weekly goal. It’s one step at a time. This is a long one….

1. Eat Healthy. Exercise. Reduce the Front Butt.

Read: Lose 30 lbs. It is really about the weight but it’s also about making healthier food choices and living a more active life. I am doing this the old fashioned way. I am not joining some expensive club or program (see Goal #3), although I am sure they help and more power to you if you do, it’s just not in the cards right now. This starts today.

Week #1 Goal: Drink enough water. Yes, my pee is bright yellow and according to Smiles is the “worst” smelling pee ever. Um, honey, do you often smell other people’s pee? Exercise 4 times this week. It won’t be a marathon since I am close to 30 and now falling apart). Allow myself 1 small “cheat” per day. Instead of having 10 cookies, I will only eat one. Small steps, right?

2. Simplify. Organize.

I am OVERWHELMED with stuff. LC and LP have so many toys and clothing that we can hardly fit it all in our house (and we don’t have a small house). Seriously, I need a massive garage sale and some built-in cabinets. I dream about built-ins…. apparently, they invented those in 1989 since our house was built in 1988.

Week 1 Goal: Organize the photos. I have a stack of pictures that need to be put in albums and no back-ups of all of our digital pictures.


3. Financial Make-Over
Last week, Smiles and I sat down to discuss a budget. We are fortunate to have jobs in this economy and pay our bills, but we never feel like we are getting ahead. We have some very specific goals and dream of having a Roloff hobby farm (Little People Big World, TLC) – minus the dangerous pumpkin launcher.

Week #1 Goal: Steer clear of the overly expensive, wallet shrinking, waist expanding habit of eating out. Eliminate Reduce my trips to the not-so-local coffee house.


4. Reclaim the Flame.
Stressed. Overwhelmed. Finances. Screaming Toddlers. All of these things can take their toll on relationships. The most important relationship in my life sometimes takes the back seat when life gets in the way. I am blessed with the most wonderful husband. I need to show it more.

Week 1 Goal: Give him 15 minutes of extra love and attention every day. Pick up that book that I have been thinking about reading.


5. Find outlets.
Find hobbies, creative outlets, anything so that I can answer that dreaded question, “What do you like to do?”

Week #1 Goal: Anxiously awaiting a package in the mail. A new hobby to explore. More to come.

Friday, May 15, 2009

SLAP! Sidelined

About two month ago, I started running and was quickly sidelined by a foot injury. To give my foot a rest, I started rollerblading ... and I can hardly stand up straight. Go figure! Is this a sign that I am turning 30 soon? Or maybe that I am just over doing it. I can't give up on this.
This weekend I plan on spending so time documenting my redefining list. Stay tuned.

Thursday, May 14, 2009

20 minutes of dred... every morning.

I stood in my closet for a good 20 minutes this morning. For a mother of two (one very early riser) that was asking for trouble….. knowing that at any moment Little Charmer would come barreling through the door wanting to “go play”. But I had to stand there because I have NOTHING to wear. I wear the same blessed thing to work everyday. In fact, my co-workers sometimes refer to my clothing as my uniform. Mostly black. Some days all black.

The only problem is that I actually have an entire walk in closet (it’s a smaller one) full of clothes. BUT I still have nothing to wear. See I go to the store and I have limited options…I can only buy one size. It is my maximum size. I absolutely refuse to buy anything lager than the maximum size. I know Stacy and Clinton would be so disappointed.

And even if it does fit, well I immediately rule out those items in which my Front Butt, Side Butt and Real Butt look to big in.

The only way to solve this is to firm up and shed a few pounds. My motivation you ask? Well of course it is so I can feel good about myself, be healthy, etc. But I am rapidly approaching 30. If I don't do it now, will I ever do it?

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Front Butt

How do you narrow down the categories of redefinition into achievable goals?
Do you try to do everything all at once?
Do I change careers, eat healthy, exercise, find hobbies and sky dive all at once (ok, can I please redefine myself without jumping out of a plane?)?
Can I flip a switch and change it all in one day?

I could but the chances of long-term success are low.

Maybe I should start with what bothers me the most…. It’s what I call my FRONT BUTT. It’s the battle scars from carrying my beloved Little Princess and Little Charmer. It’s the reason why I am constantly adjusting my pants. It’s the thing on my lower stomach that reminds me of an extra ass, complete with a crack. Some people have an issue with showing crack in the back and they pull on their pants or wear suspenders. I pull my pants up over my front butt at least 10 times a day.

Hold on, wait a minute….. I have to adjust my Front Butt. I’m back. It’s covered.

Last night as I sat on my ass (the back one) watching the Biggest Loser finale, it made me realize that somewhere along the way I lost the one thing that always defined me. In my former life, I really was an athlete. My Front Butt and back butt are a constant reminder that I need to regain my old back butt and lose the front butt. Maybe I don't need to define myself as an athlete anymore... but it could be an added bonus to the many other things that now define who I am.

Now to develop a plan...

Friday, May 8, 2009

And so it begins…

Almost three years ago today, my husband (Smiles) and I (Redefined Mommy) welcomed our beautiful twins into this world (Little Princess and Little Charmer). They came a little earlier than expected and required some extra care (read: strict schedules, lots of feedings, tiny little outfits and overall panic by new parents who had never held babies so small). I felt so blessed to be a mother and still do to this day. I couldn't imagine life being any different.

Recently a friend said to me… “You can’t be a great mother without being great to yourself”. Crap. Where have these three years gone? My babies are getting so big (um, so am I… eek). When people ask me what I like to do, I can’t even reply. What do they mean? Well, I like to…. Um, well in my former life I was a competitive skier, runner, student, student of life, hanger outer with friends and family, high-energy, reader of books and adventurous soul of all things new. So what do I like to do now? I don’t know.

Let’s be real. I love my children. I love my husband. I love my life. My children and husband love me and tell me so daily. I love like my job. But where have I gone? This is the start of my journey to find myself again. In this mission, I hope to renew my spirit, become ME again.

I like to call it Operation Momme, putting the “me” back in Mommy.