Weigh In!!

Well.. I gained a pound :-( 164#s! But in my defense it was my birthday... can I use that?

I have to say that I got some birthday money and an old navy gift card and TRIED to shop for myself. After trying on many clothes and ending the adventure in tears I spent all the money on my girls.. oh and the water bill.

I guess in some regard I feel that I should share that I struggled with an eating disorder in my mid to late teens and these extre pounds I am carrying "weigh" (pun intended) heavily on my heart. I try and remind myself that I have 3 kids and not a lot of time... yea.. that doesn't usually help.

I just have to keep remind myself that all I need to do it focus... and that I am ok just as I am... I guess.

~Jessica

Don't forget to cheer on the other people at Shrinking Jeans!!

W.O.W!!!!!

Well it is W.O.W time again and I have to say that this time around my project is daunting.. it is.. MY CLOSET!! Now this may not seem like a huge project but oh it is! In my weightloss frustration I will try on something, be mortified by how it looks and throw it on the floor. After doing this 5 or 6 times I stomp out of my closet in tears, and in pajamas. The end result is this.....

Ya... I know *sigh* BUT this WILL be done by next week!!! Wish me luck and don't forget to check and cheer on everyone else entering Becky W.O.W competition!!

~Jessica

Weekly Recipe Swap!!!

Well it's Monday so it's time to share!!!! :-)

My recipe this week is for Cheese and Chiles Chicken breast platter. Obviously any side dish will do to make this delicious and simple dinner!

4 Skinless, chicken breast halves (about 1 lb)

1 cup shredded jack cheese

1 can diced green chiles

1/2 chopped green onions (include tops)

4 slices bacon, cooked crispy and crumbled ( I suggest getting some of that grease out also)

1 medium frim but ripe Avacado

1 cup optional sour cream

Bake chicken tightly covered in foil at 350* for fifteen minutes.

While baking chicken mix cheese and chiles.

After the chicken has finished its 15 minuted top evenly with the cheese and chiles. Pat it down. Sprinkle with onions and bacon.

Cook uncovered for about 15 more minutes (your call as you'll be checking it :-). When it is fully cooked Broil about 4 inches below heat until browned ( 2 minutes ish)

Pit and peel Avacado and add to top. Do a dallop of Daisy if you wish :-)

ENJOY!! :-)

~Jessica

Prayer Request

Please keep Frannie in your prayers. She had surgery on her heart this morning and was taken back into surgery for bleeding.  I do not know all the details as I do not know her but please pray for her and her family.

~Jessica

Weigh In!!

163#! That 3 lbs down! I honestly have no idea how I did it?! I did not have a great excercise week but did TRY to eat a little better.. I usually have a really hard time with weight loss due to thyroid issues so I am pretty stoked if this is an accurate loss!! :-) Gonna kick but this week either way! :-) Hope everyone else had and has a great week!! :-)

~Jessica

Cheer everyone on at Shrinking Jeans! :-)

Weekly Recipe Swap!

I am starting an Weekly Recipe Swap! I have been in desperate need of some delicious new and simple recipes and thought it would be great to share with everyone some of my favorites and learn some new ones! So I figure that Monday is a great day to do a post because is will give us all a chance to try our new recipes through out the week! It is your choice if you want it to be a side dish, entree or dessert! Lets have fun and learn a lot of new meal ideas! :-)

Fabulous Homemade Mac N' Cheese!

1/2 of a 1 lb. package elbow macaroni

4 T. butter or margarine
3-1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 eggs, beaten
1 c. milk
1 tsp. salt
pepper to taste

Drain cooked macaroni and add butter or margarine, stirring until melted. Add cheese, then eggs and milk and salt. Cook and stir 3 minutes over medium heat. Pour into greased casserole dish and bake uncovered @ 350° for 20 minutes. (Credit for this recipe goes to my friend Laura :-)

Don't forget to let us know how it all works out! :-) Eat with ya soon!!

~Jessica

Weekly World News!

So my friend Michelle gave me a copy of this magazine called the Weekly World News as a joke! I think it is the funniest thing i've seen in awhile!! Check this out!

I had a good laugh about this headline! Apparently guys..we will be taking our cell phones into heaven so we can send some pics back to our loved ones...or some garbage magazine! Hmm..interesting! :-)

My friend Becky is having another fun giveaway! Go to her blog to get a chance to win this special book just in time for fathers day!!

Fun Family Frames!

This first pic is of the opposing wall. By shopping at thrift stores and yard sales I was able to decorate the entire thing for $13!! (aside from the T.V obviously! :-)

I had been staring at the blank wall in my upstairs loft for about 6 months. On one side I had this memorial to my Grandpa, who helped raise me and died last June. 

On the other side I had nada! I had been searching thrift stores for something that fit in with my decor and kept coming up empty handed.. so I decided to make my own!

We started with simple brown package paper ( the stuff you use to wrap boxes to mail.)

Then we used standard black craft paint and each put a handprint.
Finally I put the finished (and nearly free) project in a frame I found at a thift store for $9!

I think the finished project looks pretty good and the total cost was $10! Do you have any cheap decor projects to share?

Tagged!

Well Tiff tagged me so here goes!

8 Things I Am Looking Forward To:

1. Summer with my girls
2. Camping
3. Getting my house cleaned
4. Going to Seattle this summer
5. The lake with friends
6. Seeing Jenn
7. My birthday
8. My Aunt and Uncle moving here!

8 Things I Did Yesterday:

1. Drove.
2. Volunteered at the girls' school
3. Made dinner
4. Played on the computer
5. Talked to my Mama
6. Helped my girls start to organize their rooms
7. Started a weightloss plan
8. Laundry

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:

1. Magically clean my house in 10 minutes.
2. Speak spanish
3. Be done with school already
4. Make enough to pay my bills
5. Have some energy
6. Get my girls to keep their room clean
7. Understand adults who act like they are children
8. Keep my kids young forever

8 Shows I Watch:

1. Lost
2. Boston Legal
3. TMZ
4. Law & Order: SVU
5. Brothers & Sisters
6. Castle
7. ummm..idk..I am not much for T.V

8 People Tagged:

Daiquiri

Becky

Bethany

Jenn

Those are the only people I really know on blogger other than the one who  tagged me!! :-)

Time to Shrink!

OK...deep breath.. i have joined in a weight loss group/challenge called The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans!... but this requires weigh ins..that I have post... to the public. SO.. I am weighing in at.. weeping a little.. 166! I have avoided the scale for awhile so this is a little bit of a O crap moment! But I AM READY TO GET MOTIVATED AND KICK MY OWN ASS!! oh ya.. I went that far with this! Get ready for a thinner me! Here is a pic of me pre baby (2 year old) and this is my goal. 125lbs! 

That is 40lbs total... I have no idea how I got here but I am done with it! Wish me luck and keep checking back for progress! 

~Jessica

Monday Mayhem...

Man o man today feels like a Monday! I was up late last night writing a paper on policies of the Cold War..exhilirarting i know. 

When I was finally finished it was late and I was tired. So I layed down in bed excited for sleep...and it didn't come..it didn't come until 3 am. Sometimes as much as I attempt to avoid getting over stressed or over anxious it all floods in at once. I really do have faith that all I am lacking will be provided but what I struggle with is the patience to wait for it...

So I lay awake with thoughts of the bills I can't pay, the house I can't keep clean and the anxiety of the million "what if's"... I struggle to come up with the answers to my own questions.. and then I realize that I am not having enough faith. I didn't first think to pray about it, in fact I didn't think of that at all. I have had many times in the past months that I really realized the power of prayer so you would think that when I get overwhelmed that would be the first thing I would think about..but it isn't. Why? 

I am excited to get back into the schedule of my bible study. I have grown so much in just what I have learned and maybe I just need to resume my outward actions to help me remember all the inward ones...

Well that's my Monday Mayhem thoughts.. How is your Monday?

~Jessica