Losing Weight, take 2

Well, some of you may remember that about this time 2 years ago, I decided to lose a bunch of weight. I had lost 24lbs, and then I got pregnant. And I was still doing pretty good weight-wise. Surprisingly! I weighed less when I delivered Finn than I did before I lost weight. Well, anyway, I gained some weight after I had him, and so I have decided to lose weight again. I have been doing it for about a month now, and I have lost nine pounds! Yay for me!
The goal is to lose 50 lbs, and also to exercise. I didn't exercise at all last time. I did pretty well exercising every day until Christmas. And I haven't done it since. Shameful. Anyway- just thought I should tell you because I am excited about it. Also, I am wearing my skinny jeans- jeans I bought online that were too small. And they fit just great! I am feeling pretty good!

Blogging Rut

So, I have no idea what to blog about. I am ashamed because I have had plenty of things to blog about, but have not done it, and now I don't know what to say. It has been too long. And I am imagining all of you guys looking at me and shaking your heads in despair, and I feel ashamed. Oh, the joy. So, to appease the masses (well, mostly my own self) I am blogging about nothing of note.

Finn is now 18lbs 8 oz, which is MONSTROUS! I feel like my arm is about to fall off if I ever have to carry him around. Which I do, unfortunately! I also finally got around to buying him a crib. I haven't set it up yet. I think I will make Jason do it when he gets home from his camp out. Finn is now in 6-9mo clothes and size 3 diapers. He's getting too big. I don't even feel like he's a baby anymore!

I recently spent a week in Idaho for my cousin's wedding. It was lots of fun to see everyone and we all stayed up way too late. Especially my mom and I, staying up til 5am multiple times. It was sad, and I still don't think I have recovered on sleep. Or maybe I have recovered on sleep, but my house hasn't recovered from my recuperation period.

I have decided I need some shorts. Summer snuck up on me, and I am dying of heat. Some shorts would be nice. But, I don't want to buy any because I am hoping to lose some weight. I was doing so great throughout my pregnancy, only gaining 15lbs, but then I delivered and packed it all on. So now I weigh the same as I did before I lost any weight at all, way back at the beginning of last year. That doesn't make me too happy. I think I might start The Daily Plate again. But I am weighing it against eating. I mean, if I am just going to gain it all back the next time I have a kid, maybe I should just wait until I am done having kids to get skinny. (And I am going with the "your body has a weight it reverts to" theory because I am sure not going to gain 20lbs after every kid! I would be waaaaaaaay too fat then.)

And that is about all the things on my mind at this moment. Have a nice day! :)

Exciting Food News!!

So, yesterday I finally stopped procrastinating. I have been wanting a panini press for a long time. I mean, a LONG time! Like longer than a year. But I never got around to getting one. I'm not sure why- I mean, they aren't THAT expensive (I paid $40 for mine) and they are super fun. So, yesterday I decided to just suck it up and buy one. (A big Thanks to Julie- for motivating me to get one as a means of helping others!) And, I have to admit- I am SOOOOO excited about it! It came with quite a few recipes, but I am mostly excited to start inventing things. All sandwiches are better as a panini. Plus, they are so easy to use! So, yeah. I know you are all jealous. Except for you guys who already have one. But still.
As a general update- everything here is going fine. Well, at least as fine as it ever is. I am excited to say that I have been awesome at keeping up with my dishes lately. Which is quite a feat if you are A) Amanda, B) without a dishwasher, and C) have been cooking elaborate meals. Okay- not too elaborate, but plenty of dirty pots and pans that need soaking. The diet thing- you ask- well, it's going ok. I seem to have lost a little steam, yet again, but it will pick up soon, I'm sure. Maybe after I finish off that german chocolate cake I made the other day... (see http://thesauteepan.blogspot.com)

A new yummy snack!!

So, I just found the most delicious new low-fat snack!! They are Dreyer's Snack Size Fruit and Cream bars (pictured on the right- it was the only photo I could find!) They are uber-delicious, and- get this- only 45 calories a bar!! Seriously- it's a delicious dessert that doesn't cost you anything. Okay, well, not much. Plus I paid only $3 for 24 bars. So, yeah, I'm pretty excited about it!

I'm so excited!

So, if anyone has been watching my weight loss ticker, you will have noticed that I have been stuck at 19.6 lbs lost for quite some time now. Seriously- like a month. It was a roller coaster. Honestly, I gained some weight back, but didn't want to ticker that. Nobody needs to know that embarrassing-ness. So, I gained some weight, lost some weight, gained some weight, lost some weight and kept going right back to 19.6 lbs! It was so frustrating! But, this morning when I weighed myself, I was down two pounds! YES!!! I am beyond excited! Once I start losing it goes pretty well, but those plateaus are really hard. So, I am prepared to kick it up a notch now that I can see some results! I was planning to go walk to like 5 grocery stores today looking for rhubarb, but it's a little late now. Some of them were really far away, and I want to be back by six, since Jason should be getting home. Maybe next week...

Coolest Website EVER!!!

OH MY GOSH!! I just discovered the coolest website EVER!!! Okay, at least for me it is! As you all know, I have been trying to count my calories. But, it's hard when you're cooking because it's all guesstimation. Unless you want to take the time to count everything out and measure it, which I don't. But- NO LONGER! Now- you don't ever have to do it again, thanks to http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
You enter in your recipe and servings, and immediately, you get Nutritional Information! And not just calories! We are talking fat, fiber, sugars, protein, and significant vitamins. I mean- AMAZING! Right? It is so cool! I can't wait to start using it! I tried it for a trial recipe, and it was so quick! And incredible! And it even gives your dish a grade based on the health aspect. I know- maybe I am a little over-excited here. But I thought I would share it, as it's the coolest website I have found in a LONG time!
Again, it's http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php

The Bane of my Existence

I have decided that I have an arch-enemy. Yes- that is right. I have a nemesis. Jealous? Well, don't be. Is anyone curious who it is? Well, since the joy of blogging is that I don't actually have to hear your lame responses and see your rolling eyes, I can just tell you. My arch-enemy is treats for mutual. Here I am, trying so hard to count my calories, and I have to bring treats for mutual. Two weeks in a row. The first week, I wasn't worried. I was the only one bringing treats, and teenage girls eat a lot more than you think. So, I bought two boxes of mini cupcakes. Pictured below.
Well, much to my chagrin, the girls only ate part of one box!! So, of course, I had to eat the rest. And those little suckers are over 100 calories each, which isn't too bad, except for I was eating like 4 a day. Well, this week, I had to bring a dozen cookies. And you can never make just a dozen cookies. I was worried, because I knew others were bringing cookies. And they ate maybe three of mine. So, I had like 4 dozen cookies at home. AAAAAHHHHHHH!! It's like my worst nightmare!! Luckily, Lauren and Adam decided to save my butt from becoming any lardier by agreeing to take them all. Thank goodness, because I don't think my diet can take this! Next week, I am going to buy or make something I won't eat. I hope.

I am a Fat-Burning Machine!

So, I just wanted to do a little bit of bragging. Since reading all of your wonderful comments about how thin I am looking, I decided to weigh myself in the middle of the week. I try to only weigh myself once a week, but sometimes you just can't resist. And I found out I have lost a total of 12 pounds! Whoo-hoo! In only 2.5 weeks! I am feeling really, really great about it. And I still have just been counting calories. I am ever so grateful for thedailyplate.com. It's so fantastic! Honestly, if I had known that losing weight would be this easy, I would have gone on a diet like 5 years ago, if not more. So, I just wanted to share that happy tidbit!
Also, I went in to get my x-ray thing done yesterday, and everything was fine, so I am on to the actual event next month! Wish me lots of luck!

Calorie Counting

I am really impressed with my ability to stick with this whole calorie counting thing. I still haven't been exercising yet (I am too busy. Okay- enough excuses.) But I have been counting calories the last few days. I have never stuck with it so long, so I think it will actually happen. I just wanted to share this amazing website:
THEDAILYPLATE.COM
Here, FOR FREE!!, you can find out how many calories you can consume based on age, height, weight, activity level, and how much you want to lose. Then, you can use their database to find any foods you have eaten and enter them in. It automatically tells you how many calories, carbs, sugars, fat, and other stuff you have eaten, and how much you can eat for the remainder of the day. It is so cool! You can also plug in any exercise you do, and it will allow you to eat more calories, if you want to. Or you can just lose extra calories. It's pretty cool. If you want to lose weight, I would definitely check it out!