This Is Hard!

I gotta say, THIS DIET IS HARD! The pounds aren't just dropping off like they did the last time I tried to loose weight. Those first 35 pounds were a piece of cake, but this time it's not. I'm exercising, eating right, and drinking lots of water. I have lost 8 of my 20 pounds, but it's about killing me. I really want some cheese and bread! I made myself homemade tomato soup for lunch today, but it just wasn't the same without the giant mount of shredded cheddar cheese in it. I miss my carbs, dairy, and sugar. I'm counting down the days until I can have something yummy again. This cheesecake and I have a date in just a few more weeks.

New Year, New...

ME!
Isn't it funny how we all make these New Year's Resolutions? Why not a New July Resolution? Or a New March Resolution? Well, as it is, I have several New Year's Resolutions and I'm really the kind of person that has to be accountable for them. I pretty much have to announce it to the world in order to accept it! Anyone else feeling the New Year energy and motivation to start and do things this year?

Numero Uno for me:

Lose 20 more pounds!!! eeek! You read that right. It's been more than a year since I had Barrett and I'm still 20 pounds overweight. I'm hoping that makes some of you feel good about yourselves! I don't feel too bad, though, because I lost 35 pounds in October and November, but I put 5 back on during the holidays. SO, if you do the math, I had 50 pounds to lose after having Barrett. Yep, I gained 50 pounds and kept every single ounces of it for more than a year. Now that the holidays are over, I'm newly motivated to lose the last 20.

Good Luck to ME!

Mr. Photogenic

Nick is such a "poser" these days. The other day I pulled my camera out and this is what I got from Nick. Too, Too, CUTE! He was quite the photogenic kid and I got a bunch of cute pictures of him.

Merry Christmas...
To: Mom
From: Nick

Now That's A Snow Storm

It's beginning to look a lot more like Christmas where we live.

School was cancelled yesterday due to the massive amount of snow we received. I measured about 30+" last night, but it kind of depends on where you measure. Regardless, it was a good storm.

(on the right side of the above picture you can see how

high the snow comes up on my little gate to my garden)

AND...like all good holidays, Barrett has strep. Had to make the trek to the doctor's office in the snow yesterday morning. It was some white-knuckle driving. It wouldn't be a holiday unless one of my kids was sick.

Merry Christmas!

Really, what are the chances?

And now Barrett and Nick match. (See previous post)
Less than 48 hours after Nick's accident, Barrett also fell off the couch and fractured his wrist. I'm ready to sell the dang couch! It's a pretty sad deal at our house these days. The two boys are pretty miserable and I think the broken limbs have made them really mean. Is that possible (let me know if you've experienced this at your home)? Barrett can't walk, so therefore, he cannot crawl now either. He puts up a huge fit when I sit him down. I guess he'll either learn to walk real soon, or he'll just be a grouch for the next three weeks.
We're going to see the orthopedic surgeon on Wednesday for Nick's break to make sure it's healing correctly. If it isn't, he'll need surgery.

Ah...never a dull moment in the Stanworth household.

If this kid doesn't have the worst luck...

If Nick didn't have bad luck, he wouldn't have any luck at all.

Last night Nick and Ryan were rough-housing on the couch and Nick fell off. That seems innocent enough, but he was still crying over it an hour and a half later and he wouldn't let me touch his arm. Long story short, he broke a bone in/near his elbow and now we are waiting on an appointment with a Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon. His been pretty grouchy and really wants his temporary cast "Off." Thank goodness that our good buddy Peyton was available to come play today and distract us.

And yes, Nick still had his pajamas on because I didn't want to have to deal with re-putting on the temporary cast...and yes, he should be wearing a sling, but I can only battle so many things this morning.

Elk Slayer (aka: Britta)

I freakin' LOVE this girl.

My sister-in-law, Britta, shot her first elk this year & supervised Jeff while gutting it.

And I totally love my sweet husband for gutting her elk so that she wouldn't have to do it.

(How convenient that Craig forgot his knife at the 4-wheeler???)

Feeling Crafty

So, I've been on a bit of a crafty kick lately (it doesn't happen very often anymore).

More than TWO YEARS ago, my wonderfully talented, creative, and inspiring sister-in-law, Erica, posted this about a Christmas Advent calendar that she made:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/advent_calendar/

I loved it, so TWO YEARS later, I started in July and finally finished one that I modified a little. I put it on sheet metal and put magnets on the back of the tins. I'm so glad that another Christmas hasn't gone by before I did this project.
My very crafty and smart neighbor, Amber, taught herself and then me to make these gems. Naturally, I've made about 12....one in every color that the girls could possibly need. Love them, thanks Amber!
I also made these while camping. Thanks for crafting while camping with me Britta.
Jeff and my brother Craig were out hunting this:

WAY TO GO CRAIG!!!