Feeling a little cloudy…

I always try to come up with some lame, catchy title that will catch your attention . Today,this is the best that I can come up with.  And, it has mostly to do with the weather.

Something happened a few weeks ago, or maybe it was a week ago or, maybe it was even a few months ago. I can’t quite pinpoint it down. It doesn't matter when it happened, that is beside the point.

I am in a funk.

A hormonal, crying like I’m 12, yelling like I’m 15, hormonal mess.

It is awesome as it sounds.

I thought that it was just  a little bump in the road that would go away. Well, it’s surpassed a bump and now has turned into a big, old, sink hole. One in which I keep falling in.

To be honest, at first, I thought it was just the weight loss stuff. The fact that I couldn’t lose a pound to save my life & the simple fact that  I could only gain.  Then I started noticing that I started and kept crying for no reason. For example, I cried the other day because the shower was dirty.  Pathetic….umm..yes. I think I was crying more about the fact that it was dirty and I was the one who had to clean it and it was just one more thing to add the list of the things that I haven’t gotten to.

Now, before you all start thinking I’m pregnant or pre-menopausal, I had a hysterectomy at 27. I’m 34. So, neither of those things are possible.

I have just hit a wall. An emotional wall. Unfortunately one that I can’t just keep plowing through with excuses of busyiness. I have to put on my big girl boots and deal with it.

So, I am going to. It’s so hard though. It would be easier if I didn’t tell anyone anything and just kept pretending like it was all ok. Frankly, I don’t even know what “IT” is.

I do know that I am dealing with some physical stuff. I have been to a a thyroid/hormone specialist. They took enough blood to make me pass out.I go back next week to see what is going on there. In the mean time I am on some Armour Thyroid. She will regulate this once we know more after the blood work comes back.                  (next Monday)

I also have been having these episodes/attacks. They come out of no where and scare the crap out of me! I think that I just might be hypo-glycemic. I have been reading up on this and when I do have an attack (4 this week) I eat some cheese and drink some apple juice. Needless to say, I eat a lot of cheese!  These attacks just started coming out of nowhere. I blacked out the other day on the freeway with my 7 yr. old in the car. I know that there were angels with me that day. Luckily I was talking to my little sister on the phone who yelled at me to get off the freeway and  pull over. Everything was fine, I was just really, really scared.

So, ever since the attacks, I have been eating “Body for Life” way, per my friend the nutrition professor’s advice.  Not going to lie—it sucks, and it’s hard. The whole sugar issue is a hard one for me. When one is addicted to sugar, it is hard for one to get off of it. Hey,if I can kick Diet Coke, I can kick anything…right?

I also went to see a foot zoner who is also an emotional healer. Can I just say that I love her?  This woman is one of the major blessing's that my life needs right now. I just figured it out. When I leave her, I feel like I can conquer whatever it is I am supposed to conquer.  She is a tender mercy for me.  I wonder if she will let me come over every day….

I don’t like to be scared. I don’t like to show people my weaknesses. I don’t like feeling  like I need to walk around with an umbrella because something is going to fall on me (hypothetically of course)

I just feel like I am sitting at the bottom on my linen closet and everything in the closet keeps falling on me and I am trying to keep my head above the towels, sheets, curtains etc. (yes, I have an addiction to linens, it’s bad and I am facing it)

I decided to take my life one shelf at a time.

Why one shelf at a time? Well, I have to open my linen closet just so, or everything will fall out.

So, I am going to open my closet just so, and then tackle one shelf at a time. I will do this until I can swing open the door and know that nothing will fall on my head. Then, I will move onto my kitchen cupboards.

Please hang with me. I am still here. I just might not always be gluing, crafting or painting something. Although, I need to do more of that because it is my therapy. 

Creating makes me happy!

Maybe, just maybe, I need to find my happy place again.

Thank you for being patient with me. I so appreciate it.

I do have a pretty cute polka dot umbrella though…..I do still have my priorities.

Love you all, your support means more to me than I could ever put into words.

Good Morning!

I am off to my craft room for hopefully a day of productivity.

I LOVE this quote!

Thought that I would share

Happy Wednesday!

I have been a little shy lately…

I know that this is a total shocker to all of you.

Me…shy? Yep.

Well, maybe not exactly shy, but annoyed, frustrated and then embarrassed.

If you have been reading my blog lately, you know that I am on a weight loss journey.

I was really hoping that it would be more of a 6 mile run rather than a 26.2 marathon.

I have been doing Weight Watchers. When I first started, I was doing really well.

Then I got sick.

Not the” lose weight cause I’m sick,” sickness.

More like the “gain 8 lbs. cause I’m sick,” sickness.

It has been awesome!

Well, I am all better and I ended up 2lbs. heavier than when I started Weight Watchers.

I was ticked!

To say the least.

I jumped back on my ww  schedule and didn’t lose a flippin pound!

So, I thought, screw it and I ate whatever I wanted…for 10 days.

A lot of whatever I wanted.

I didn’t gain, but I sure as heck didn’t lose anything either.

I love Dr. Oz! Really, I love him! I want to go on his show.

Why am I telling you this random thing about me?

Well, he has this thing that he is doing with WW. Transformation Nation.

I thought, “what the heck, I will sign up.” I could win a million dollars. I guess I could use a million dollars..

So, I filled out the questionnaire, answered a zillion questions and ended up what my daily calorie intake should be to lose weight & to to be exercising 3x a week.

Holy crap people-2500 calories. Now, I realize that this is not an exact science, but I now know that I have not been eating enough points. My mother has been telling me this for weeks. (she used to be a ww leader)

I am ashamed to say that I didn’t listen to her, but yet I will listen to a total stranger (Dr. Oz)

So, I have been eating more food than I usually do. Good Food. Lots of veggies & fruits and I upped my dairy intake. (again, my mom told me to do this awhile ago…I am hanging my head in shame)

I upped my point total by 5 with this week. (in addition to my activity points)

I am happy to report-the scale moved today!

Wa-hoo!

I am still up from where I started ww, but I have to let that go.

A loss is a loss.

So, this week-down 1.4lbs.

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

A totally random subject change in the same post…cause that’s how I roll.

Anyway…people have asked me how I kicked my Diet Coke habit?

Honestly, I did it Cold Turkey. I haven’t had a cold, burny, Diet Coke  in 56 days. (yes, I know that I made up the word “burny,'” but if you drink soda-you know exactly what I am talking about)

I have tasted one though. Unfortunately, it was not good.  I was a little sad about that. I still wanted it to taste sooo good.

Why?

This is going to sound totally random, but I miss the addiction.

I miss the fact that in my mind-a Diet Coke could fix a bad day.

Does that make sense?

I don’t miss the drink, I miss the Diet Coke 2pm treat.

Am I totally on my own here?

I know that this is weird, but I can’t be the only one who feels this way.

Can I?

I have found  a treat that I like..a lot.

It helps with the whole missing my diet coke habit.

Sparkling Ice

flavored, carbonated water that I get at Costco.  It’s flavored with splenda and no calories or weird ingredients that I can’t pronounce.

They are a little more pricey-so if you pick some up, don’t share them with your kids!

Another treat that I found that is oh so yummy!

Dark Chocolate Mint M&M’s!

My cute husband brought a bag home for me the other day and I could have just kissed him when I tasted them.

The dark chocolate is usually not my favorite-but these M&M’s are delish! 1 single serving bag is 6 points-but they are much more rich that regular milk chocolate. So, 1 bag was more than enough of a treat.

Try these things:

Sparkling Ice

Dark Chocolate M&M’s

Darigold Cottage Cheese (at costco and oh so good!

The Bathroom is finally finished!

Can’t wait to show you the pics!

Stay Tuned!!!

 

A birthday party and a bathroom redo

These two things have been on my to do list and I am happy to report that the 10 yr. olds birthday party is over..and the bathroom is almost done.

Wa-hoo!

Here is how the bathroom looked before.  Kind of.

I took the pics after we ripped the floor tile up and installed the backer board in the shower.

Look at the lovely, yellow, nasty linoleum that the before crappy, tile job was hiding. 

( the previous owners did this, not us)

I know that you are totally jealous of my awesome before.

We re-did this bathroom because we needed another shower desperately.  I have 3 girls and they all shower in my bathroom. They also have been known to help themselves to my extremely expensive shampoo and conditioner.  I also have this whole weird thing about my girls not smelling like me. So…I am not very good at sharing my body wash & lotion.

So basically, we redid the bathroom because I don’t know how, or rather don’t want to share my stuff.

That is a fantastic reason..right?

I thought so too.

The only things left to do until I get to reveal the whole new bathroom to ya’all-

* paint the walls

* paint the bead board

* paint the vanity and new mirror

* install the new light and faucet and of course…accessorize.

The bad news-all of these responsibilities are mine.

I can not blame my undone bathroom on anyone else but me.

Dang!

Hopefully I will have tons of after pics to show by this time next week.

 

One of the reasons why I have been a little behind on my to do list-

My 10 yr. old had a birthday party with 15 little, spunky, sugared up 10 yr. olds.

I love her, but I love the fact that the party is over more.

Well…ta-ta for now.

Happy Creating!

The weight loss game..I must have mis-read the directions.

Ok-I am going to vent, yell, maybe cry a little and then ask for some advice.

Sound good?

So, I have been off of Diet Coke for 26 days! 

26 days people!

That is forever!

I drink water..a lot of water..a ton of water!

I have gone to Costco and bought tons of produce and I have eaten it all before it went bad.

Even the mixed greens.

I should win an award or something.

I was even working out. Shaking my groove thing to Black Eyed Peas and trying like heck to beat my 9yr. old's high score.

I had lost 4 lbs. in 2 weeks. 

I was so very proud of myself!

Wa-hoo!

Then....I got sick.

Not like the throw up lose 5lbs. sick.

The snot nose, smokers cough, ear infection sick.

I was sick for 8 days.

I drank tons of water, but didn't eat a lot. When I did eat, it wasn't all cookies and white bread or anything.

Well, I got on the scale today and I am up not only the 4lbs. that I lost-but also add an additional 4lbs.

That is for a grand total of 8 pounds!

That's a pound a day people.

Pardon my french..but what the hell?!

I know that my body was busy fighting off the infection, but come on!

I am so frustrated and mad and angry and sad and ticked...

Basically, annoyed.

I have been really good this whole week with tracking my points and eating the way I am supposed to.

The only thing that I haven't done is exercise. 

I have felt too crappy to exercise.

So, in a nut shell, I feel like an ugly, blob of a person.

And, to put the icing on the cake-I am in a crafting rut-so none of my Valentine's decor is up.

I know, I know-I am totally hanging my head in shame.

I am hoping that you will make me feel better about myself and tell me that I shouldn't be frustrated and tell me that as soon as I am back to feeling 100-I will lose all the weight and then some.

If you don't want to tell me that, at least tell me that I looked smoking hot today..

Love you all!

What to do with fabric covered boxes..

Pin It

Ok-so my last post was a little um..random. I wrote it quickly and it was late and I was feeling el-crapo and blah, blah, blah blah.

I thought that I would explain the post for you today. You know, cause I'm nice like that.

It all started with this pin from pinterest.

*Sidenote*

If you don't follow me on my pinterest, you really should. 

I pin way too much, so I find some pretty awesome stuff.

I thought that it was a great, cheap idea! I love great, cheap ideas, so I gave it a go. 

The boxes turned out perfectly for the space. (my 7yr. old's room) 

If I were to do this in another part of my house, I would have used a more grown up fabric line. 

I probably wouldn't embellish the boxes either. 

That would be really hard for me to do though. I love glitter and buttons and ribbon and my glue gun. 

Way more than one should, I'm sure. 

So, the boxes inspired this room makeover.

I made the fabric covered boxes for my 7yr. old’s room. She got a mini room makeover for Christmas and her walls were still a little too bare for my liking. I can see her room from mine, so I do like it to look good.

A little truth telling here-my other two girls, they are PIGS! Granted, they are girls and they are 10 and 12 and I know that my room was very similar to theirs when I was their age. So, I choose to do as my mother did. Close the door. Out of sight, out of mind. They reside in the basement, so I really don’t see it and so I really don’t care. I do care about their younger sisters room though. I see it, therefore it must not only be clean, but decorated. Why decorated? Because it’s me and I decorate E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G!

So, to keep up with my past track record, I decorated some boxes with fabric for her room. What can I say, I am a little bit strange.

Ever since I saw this room on 320 sycamore, I wanted to make my own version.

Love, Love, Love the framed shoes! I made my own using some red shoes that I picked up at…the thrift store. You are shocked..right? I then used mod podge and red glitter to make the ruby slippers frame worthy.

 Did I mention that I love them and I wish that they were a size 9 so I could wear them everyday?

I had my little sister make 15 pillows out of a bunch of fun, patterned fabric. Why so many different colors and patterns? Well, we all know that I am a bit on the lazy side when it comes to decorating. Grace had a few pieces of furniture that were random colors. I didn’t want to paint anymore than I absolutely had to, so I had to make the lime green desk and bright blue bookcase “go together.”

I also had to make the room come together on a budget. I did decorate it in December and funds were low, so I went through my stash of curtains. Yes, I have a stash of curtains. Panels, valances etc. This collection would be one of the reasons why my linen closet would barely closes. I was thrilled that I had a set of panels and plaid valances that would work. Wa-hoo! I again begged my sister to share her sewing talents with me and sew the two together. Worked out perfectly! This was one of the few times my husband was impressed with my curtain collection.

I found this cutest sign for Miss Grace at Ross for $5! Perfect!

I made this wreath with some yummy felt, a wreath form from the thrift store and straight pins. I used this fabulous tutorial from the blog, A bit of Sunshine. Her cute silhouette is from Kindergarten and she just made the rainbow the other day. She was thrilled to have a spot to hang her creations.

Overall, the room turned out better than I could have hoped.

Who knew that fabric on Christmas card boxes would look so good?

Partying here:Sugar Bee CraftsLadybug BlessingsDIY by DesignCherished BlissWednesday's Wowzers & Oopsey DaiseyGinger Snap Crafts Sassy SitesReasons to skip the houseworkCreatively LivingSavvy Southern StyleThe 36th Avenue

Box Lids turn Fabulous Wall Decor!

Ok-I know that this might sound kind of crazy, strange and just plain weird.

Who makes wall decor out of old box lids?

Well, that would be the same girl who see's ugly tables as ottomans.

I promise, it looks great.

My 7 yr. old needed some decor on her wall. This decor also had to be free. Why? My husband put the kybosh on my spending, so I had to use what I had.

So, I happened to find a bunch of card boxes and random dog boxes in Target's christmas section for 90% off. I also bought these boxes before my husband told me I couldn't spend anymore money. Shhh...

I then raided my fabric stash. Does anyone else find it strange that I have a 

huge fabric stash and I don't sew...at all?!

Just checking..

After I picked my fabric and painstakingly ironed every piece. (I HATE to iron-even if it's cute fabric)

I puled out my scissors and double stick tape and got to wrapping.

Yes-this is really as simple as wrapping each box with fabric just like you did all of your Christmas present's. Instead of regular old tape, use double stick tape.

Once you get everything wrapped, you are ready to hang or embellish. Now, If I was not putting these super cute, box lid decor in my 7 yr. old's room, I would not embellish them. Instead I would use a fabulously, yummy line like Joel Dewberry. ( I heart him & his fabric!)

But, because it is for a girly, girls room, I did allow myself to embellish.

Ribbon, more fabric, buttons. Whatever goes!

I also had some of this super fantastic fabric paper in my stash. LOVE this! I used this sticky yumminess to cover my round boxes. So much easier. 

Not sure how to cover your round box lids? 

Cut slits around the edge of the paper/fabric and then fold over. 

This was such a fun and simple project. Definitely allowed me to release some stress and really create. I love it when that happens. Probably not as much as my husband and family do but either way, it's a win- win!

Do this! You will love the instant gratification that this project gives!

Happy Creating!