Weight Watchers Simple Start

Overall, in the last 3 months I lost 6 pounds while tracking on weight watchers. Now, I'm trying simple start. It's the third week and I am starting school, but the last two weeks I lost 1.2 per week, or 2.4 pounds-- that's almost half as much as I lost over the last 3 months in 2 weeks! It may in a large part have to do with the fact that I have started swimming for exercise, but the whole thing has me buzzing over it. 50 in 1 year? For me, it looks possible with the new program!

My first Hat!

I have been on the hunt for the right hat to be my first hat for a few months now. The hat was originally for my sister's birthday in November, but I underestimated the amount of time needed, I didn't make a gauge swatch, and I ended up with a 1x1 rib band twice as big as my sister's head. This time, I made the swatch, found the right pattern, and I'm casting on with the invisible cast on in a 1x1 rib. All prospects are looking up!

My Weight Loss Journey

I am now on an epic weight loss journey. This is projected over the next three years. I had 140lbs to loose to get to my goal weight and I expect to get there. I am gearing up and am excited to run this marathon. I joined a weight loss support group, weight watchers, and a gym. I'm taking baby steps in adding and subtracting things to my daily life. I am 3.2 down so far. And with the temptation of Halloween two days from now, I expect to loose even more. I am that confident :). Now grab some popcorn and get settled in, there's a long story to follow folks!

Knitting

I began Knitting about a year ago when I picked up a kit and decided I was going to learn to purl and cable. Now, I am a member of ravelry and am uploading my yarn to my online stash! I also have my sister's birthday coming up. I need to knit her a hat in less than 2 weeks, and have yet to pick a pattern! But anything I let become a FO ends up being some adorable item I do a happy dance over, so I am not anxious about that as much as I am about finishing in time for her to wear it out clubbing after her birthday dinner with our parents! I believe she wants a larger, slouchy, boho hippie rasta whatever type hat- one that has a pouch in the back? The one that's tight and then looks like you could pile an afro into it. But I have never made a hat or anything successfully in the round before- except for an experimental sock that turned out somewhat wrong. Now this? I'm freaking out. Week deadline and it has to be soft, perfect, and Adorable!

I cried.

Her hair was up in a ponytail
Her favorite dress tied with a bow
Today was Daddy's Day at school
And she couldn't wait to go.
But her mommy tried to tell her,
That she probably should stay home.
Why the kids might not understand,
If she went to school alone.
But she was not afraid;
She knew just what to say.
What to tell her classmates
Of why he wasn't there today.
But still her mother worried,
For her to face this day alone.
And that was why once again,
She tried to keep her daughter home.
But the little girl went to school,
Eager to tell them all.
About a dad she never sees,
A dad who never calls.
There were daddies along the wall in back,
For everyone to meet
Children squirming impatently,
Anxious in their seats.
One by one the teacher called,
Each student from the class.
To introduce their daddy,
As seconds slowly passed.
At last the teacher called her name,
Every child turned to stare.
Each of them was searching,
For a man who wasn't there.
"Where's her daddy at?"
She heard a boy call out.
"She probably doesn't have one"
Another student dared to shout.
And from somewhere near the back,
She heard a daddy say,
"Looks like another deadbeat dad,
Too busy to waste his day."
The words did not offened her,
As she smiled up at her mom.
And looked back at her teacher,
Who told her to go on.
And with hands behind her back,
Slowly she began to speak.
And out from the mouth of a child,
Came words incredibly unique.
"My daddy couldn't be here,
Because he lives so far away.
But I know he wishes he could be,
Since this is such a special day.
And though you cannot meet him,
I wanted you to know.
All about my daddy,
And how much he loves me so.
He loved to tell me stories
He taught me to ride my bike.
He surprised me with pink roses,
And taught me to fly a kite.
We used to share fudge sundaes,
and ice cream in a cone.
And though you cannot see him,
I'm not standing here alone.
Cause my daddy's always with me
Even though we are apart.
I know because he told me,
He'll forever be in my heart."
With that, her little hand reached up,
and lay across her chest.
Feeling her own heartbeat,
Beneath her favorite dress.
And from somewhere in the crowd of dads,
Her mother stood in tears.
Proudly watching her daughter,
Who was wise beyond her years.
For she stood up for the love
Of a man not in her life.
Doing what was best for her,
Doing what was right.
And when she dropped her hand back down,
Staring straight into the crowd.
She finished with a voice so soft,
But its message clear and loud.
"I love my daddy very much,
He's my shining star.
And if he could he'd be here,
But heaven's just too far.
You see he was a fireman
And died just this past year.
When airplanes hit the towers
And taught Americans to fear.
But sometimes when I close my eyes,
It's like he never went away."
And then she closes her eyes,
And saw him there that day.
And to her mother's amazement,
She witnessed with surprise.
A room full of daddies and children,
All starting to close their eyes.
Who knows what they say before them,
Who knows what they felt inside.
Perhaps for merely a second,
They saw him at her side.
"I know you're with me Daddy."
To the silence she called out.
And what happened next made believers,
Of those once filled with doubt.
Not one in that room could explain it,
For each of their eyes had been closed.
But there on the desk beside her,
Was a fragrant long-stemmed pink rose.
And a child was blessed, if only for a moment,
By the love of her shining bright star.
And given the gift of believing,
That heaven is never too far

- Unknown

patterns - free patterns - cocoknits by julie weisenberger

patterns - free patterns - cocoknits by julie weisenberger

some truly adorable patterns in here!

St. Patrick's Day!!!

Last night, in addition to being daylight savings time and totally screwing up my schedule, was the St. Patrick's Day party. While being rather boring, it also entailed super drunk adults, regular drinking, an egg fight, and zeppoles for St. Joseph's day. Good party did not start until after 11:00.

Daughters

It is my goal to memorize this and sing it perfectly by friday night. I think it's perfect.

I know a girl,

She puts the color inside of my world

But she's just like a maze

Where all of the walls all continually change

And I've done all I can

To stand on her steps with my heart in my hands

Now I'm starting to see

Maybe it's got nothing to do with me

CHORUS

Fathers, be good to your daughters

Daughters will love like you do

Girls become lovers who turn into mothers

So mothers, be good to your daughters too

Oh, you see that skin?

It's the same she's been standing in

Since the day she saw him walking away

Now she's left, cleaning up the mess he made

CHORUS

Fathers, be good to your daughters

Daughters will love like you do

Girls become lovers who turn into mothers

So mothers, be good to your daughters too

Boys, you can break

You'll find out how much they can take

Boys will be strong and boys soldier on

But boys would be gone without warmth from

A woman's good, good heart

On behalf of every man

Looking out for every girl

You are the God and the weight of her world

CHORUS

Fathers, be good to your daughters

Daughters will love like you do

Girls become lovers who turn into mothers

So mothers, be good to your daughters too

So mothers, be good to your daughters too

So mothers, be good to your daughters too

Hmm... WINNING!

Yes, I will use the terribly overused and misused word. Right now, I am WINNING. You see, I am half involved in eskapades, something I have been looking forward to for my entire highschool career, and instead have a influential role in a highly competitve drama competition piece that my school is performing with. I am WINNING. You can see my predicament- something that I have been looking forward to for years, I have to pass up participation, and instead work the backstage because the meetings are in conjunction with my rehearsals, and one of the performance dates is the same day as my competition. Yeah. WINNING. I have 2 1/2 dozen Girl Scout Cookies left, half of which i have to sell, the other half I have to deliver. WINNING. I have recently been reconnecting with my best friends... Zach went to Lady Gaga and I am insanely jealous, especially of his new haircut!!!!!! WINNING. And Julia and I have been doing fabulously at yoga every Monday, we are increasing our flexibility of schedule and body, and taking the hour to relax, and the hour before to gossip... which was particularly good Monday, and then Tuesday night turned sour. WINNING. So I had a migrane on Tuesday and was not there to help my best friend through her break up with her boyfriend of 3 1/2 years. WINNING. I feel just awful. The worst part: he broke up by letter, then she had to move out of the locker, meaning I have a new lockermate, and all of the Girl Scout Cookies are displaced to Mr. Johnson's room, AND I walked by their english class on my way to gym and she was turned away towards the window- and HE DIDN'T MOVE HIS SEAT!!! I mean come on! The girl had to move out of the locker that was originally HERS, and you won't even move your stinkin' seat? Another thing- she gave up Chocolate for lent!!!! She doesn't even have that to comfort her!!!!! I mean, there's still black raspberry ice cream and pizza- which is what we are doing on friday! WINNING. I'm also planning manicures and an amazing UPLIFTING chick flick- NOT P.S. I Love You, which was amazing!!! Its an amazing cry, not good for break ups. Julia's taking the National Italian Exam the next day, and she's allergic to my cats, so the night will not be a sleep over, which would be therapeutic, you know, out with bad energy, in with groggy sleep filled saturday! WINNING.

That guy just bugs the crap out of me.

Happy New Year!

I had an amazing time bringing in the new year of 2011 with shopping, friends, a Back to the Future marathon, Dick Clark, and toasting at midnight after watching the ball drop. Happy 2011!!!

So funny...

Yesterday, I was babysitting my neighbors, and we all were playing outside. Their cat was stalking something... He leaped! It was-- dum-dum-dum-- a TOAD! After this incident of pouncing, the cat became afraid of the toad; pretty hard left turn if you ask me. After we had sufficiently scared of that poor cat, they decided to play Toad Olympics... that poor toad. It managed to finally get away somehow, and it is alive... but it was very funny watching those kids with that toad. So adorable!

YouTube - Mr. Bean - Goodnight Mr.Bean

YouTube - Mr. Bean - Goodnight Mr.Bean THIS IS SOOOOO ADORABLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! watch it. love it.

4th of July Recipes

I am really excited for this afternoon! The parties and fireworks--my whole town gathers together to share fireworks at the end of the day. But before that, there are the million parties that you get invited to! I personally only go to one, because by process of elimination my family has brought it down to two parties over the years, and I am holding a grudge against one of the parties. Just the party, not the hostess! Well, the party and the host. But that doesn't matter. All that matters is that I have to make the desserts! Yes, me... my mother delegates. So I was looking for something exciting and new, instead of the regular cookies or fruit platter, and I came across this: 4th of July Recipes -- Independence Day Recipes for Kids | FamilyFun ! No one at my party ever brings a trifle! So, I thought it would be an awesome dish to try out! Unfortunately, we did not have any whipping cream, and my sister refused to let me use any of 'her fruit', so... yeah. Traditional cookies it is.

So glad

I have been super-busy all week with everything going on, its ridiculous. I move all the kids around in the mornings and get them to where they are supposed to be, and it is very hard. They are so cute, though! It's totally worth the stress to be able to work with these little guys. On Tuesday, one of them was so tired, he actually took a nap in the middle of all of the other kids relaxing and playing! It was quite a sight. I am so grateful that I get to work with these kids. I just don't know what I would do without them!

Movies I wanna see....

YouTube - 'Easy A' Trailer HD

I am SOOOO excited to see this movie!!!!!

and Eclipse! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1D5goGz0SY

I have the best plans with my friends for these movies: awesome nights out, and I am sure I will think more than one part of these movies is absolutely adorable! everyone should see these...

This is stupid...

What a stereotype I thought bloggers were! I now realize that I was completely wrong about the typical blogger putting their thoughts out like a diary or just a recording of their day... no! I just hit the next blog button like 50 times and only came across moms, moms to be, women trying to become moms, moms who are obsessed with food, and moms who craft.

Honestly? You don't need a blog. JOIN FACEBOOK! I did! A blog should not be your twitter and facebook where you just spew about how cute your kids are! I appreciate the food blogs and the craft instructions, those are cool things that people appreciate others sharing, but your PREGNANCY??? No one needs to hear about your tough pregnancy after years of fertility treatments! By not being able to conceive naturally, your body was trying to tell you something-- it can't handle a pregnancy. You waited too long, or your mom screwed you over by doing something stupid during her pregnancy. Get over it. Stop beating up your body and praying for something that shouldn't happen, and ADOPT!!!!!!!! There are hundreds of thousands of kids all over the world in foster care looking to be adopted. Be a haven for some kid looking to have a better life. Be their angel.

Oh, Dear...

@#$^&$#@#^&$^*&%$@....

That's my way of saying, "f***, I'm thinking about life again...." which is never a good sign. I think: live life to the fullest. Early to bed and early to rise gets the most out of their days, because there are a lot of fun morning things you can get done that you can't get done at night. Don't stay up watching TV, it's not worth losing the sleep and then if there is anything good on which there usually isn't, you can watch it the next day online. Put in more effort and reap more rewards. Exercise 5 days a week because you feel so much better when you do. Drink more water.

Then I take a step back, laugh and remember that I'm too lazy to do any of this.

Something cute...

Its 2AM and I still cannot sleep! This will be a problem for tomorrow night, because I need to be up at 6AM Monday morning for work! While I have been pondering in my terrible headache-y lack-of-sleep boredom, something just jumped up on me... my cat! And she is VERY cute.

See? She's almost adorable!

Mostly just cute and furry.

I love bubbles!

Today I got something in the mail that was supposed to arrive yesterday- a bubble machine! Yes, an amazing bubble machine... anyhoo, when I opened my bubble machine today, inserted the batteries and turned it on, I was in for a real shock: my bubble machine doesn't work!!! It is the most disheartening thing that has happened to me in a long time. I was really excited when I opened the box- the bubble machine was purple!!!!! But, alas, it was not meant to be-- I ran the machine on brand new batteries for 15 seconds, and then it died. I will be doing something about this; i just don't know what yet... I will get my revenge.

Also today, there was camp training- SO much fun being with everyone! I am supped for camp this year!!! I plan on having a blast, so everyone had better hold onto their socks and get good a night's sleep every night, because things are going to be high energy in the heat and rainy days! I love camp so much, it totally makes up for the bubble machine. Also, I bought this amazing bubble wand the other day, and it makes a trilling fairy godmother sound, so that helps, too. If there is anyone out there, leave a comment about bubbles! Well, there's probably no one, but if there is someone, it would be really cool if you left a comment!

Hi Sunshine!

Hey everyone!!!

Of course, I don't think that there is an everyone... just me for now... this is my very first post! It is 3:15AM and I cannot sleep. I do not know why, just can't. So, I am creating this blog! Hmm, something about this, maybe the title? I say that things are adorable a lot. A lot a lot. If I like it, it is adorable! So, there is the answer to that unasked question. I guess I will be like anyone else out there, posting things I like and commenting on things I don't. Just your average blogger. So, if there is anything you would like to ask me, or say, or whatnot, comment! I'd like to see if anyone would ever read this!