90 Day Challenge: Update

    

As you all may remember, I participated in the 90 Day Weight Loss Challenge. I chose to participate with the HCG drops and couldn't be happier with my decision. I cold be happier with my performance though. I have had a rough and stressful few months and didn't do as well as I had hoped I would. The beginning was great, then I became a slacker. 

You can view my first few updates here! 

I have learned a lot about myself during this challenge and realized that I need a plan to make a change in my life. I have come up with a 6 month plan to get fit. I will continue with my HCG drops until I am happy with where I am, but it is about more than weight loss. I want to run- and that is something I just can't do now. I also want to box! I will share my plan with you Saturday!

To catch you up, even though I haven't lost what I should have by now (approximately 60 pounds) I have lost a good bit. I have lost 29 pounds and am now in a pair of  "skinny" jeans I have not gotten past my hips since I was at the beginning of my pregnancy. In my mind, that is pretty huge!

The fault in my not doing as well as I would have hoped lies within myself. When I get sick or stressed, I no longer thrive like my 21 year old self. My 28 year old self doesn't handle change too well. I didn't take the drops when I was stressed, and I didn't worry about what I ate. I do know that I can reach my weight loss goal with the drops and be able to reach the fitness goals once I have a significant amount of the weight off. 

I am doing this for my knees, my heart, my mother, my husband, and my son. I don't want to go on a downward health spiral. I want to get this under control while my health is still pretty good. Maybe I have a chance of saving my knees and my back. 

I thank you all for sticking around and I will be back Saturday with my plan, final thoughts, and a giveaway! 

Teaching a 2-Year-Old To Read With Reading Horizons

As many of you know, my husband and I made the decision to home school our little prince last summer and started right away. It was slow going at first, but eventually, he started loving letters. He would point out the letters he knew every where. So, we increased his alphabet lessons.

Around the same time as he started being interested in letters, I was asked to be on the Reading Horizons Discovery Home School Panel and give my thoughts on the program. We weren't quite ready to dive in yet. However, by the time the prince turned 2 in September, he could recognize all of his letters. I wasn't quite sure where to go from there, so I asked the head of the panel- he said let's put him on Reading Horizons Discovery. I was excited and nervous because the program is designed to start at 4 years old. We gave it a shot.

When I received the materials, I studied them for a couple weeks so that I could figure out how to do it for him. (I was told ahead of time that I would need to go at a different pace than the other children) The panel and the company has been there to answer any and all of my questions. I am a believer.

Now, not even 6 months later, the prince knows the sound all of the letters make, knows several sight words, and can even read some words. Remember, he is only 2 years and 4 months old. This is huge! Who do I have to thank for this? Reading Horizons Discovery, the Home School Panel, and a 2 year old who loves to learn.

The moment I knew it was working was actually quite hilarious. As you know, I'm married to a gamer. The prince likes to help his daddy "win" by playing with an old xbox controller. One day, he was waiting to help daddy "win" and the hubs was turning on the xbox so they could play minecraft. He even said "I'm going to play minecraft, do you want to help?" The word xbox was not mentioned. When the xbox came up on the screen, the prince said "x (the cks sound x makes) box." It was adorable and my hubby was glowing. He said "did you hear that, he just read xbox." He was one proud daddy and I was one proud momma!

He can also read the word "stop," although I'm not sure if he is recognizing the word or actually reading it, either way, I'm happy though.

I actually didn't have to make many changes to the program for it to work for my prince. Basically, instead of doing a chapter at a time, we focused on one letter at a time, took our time, and changed some of the terminology. I would say "what does an a say" instead of using the more technical terms one would use for 4-9-year-olds.

Thanks to Reading Horizons Discover, I know that we have made the right decision in homeschooling our little prince. (I'm keeping my fingers crossed for math from them!)

Reading Horizons offers many resources to get you started, free of charge. Be sure to check them out, I'm sure you will find something you can use. You will most likely be as impressed and want to purchase the program for your own children.

• Free E-newsletter
• 7-Day trial (10+)
• Free Parent Phonics Training
• Free Webinars
• Free Reading Assessments
• Free Printable Worksheets
• The Reading Corner Blog

Be sure to also follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Youtube. 

This is definitely a program that we will continue to use for years. I will also continue to revisit the lessons he has learned until I feel he is ready to move on to the next set. We're in no rush. The prince loves to learn, so I don't push him, I just want to encourage that love of learning that he has.

Disclosure: By being a part of the panel and reviewing the product, I received Reading Horizons Discovery for compensation. All opinions are my own. 

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The Joys of Filing

 

I don't know about any of you, but I am obsessed with all things organizing and office. Taking me into an office supply store is as bad as the shoe store. My husbands dreads it. I get told to "focus" several times during each trip.

One of the things I obsess over the most is filing and I have several ways that I file things. This has been a life-saver at different jobs, but makes it difficult for people to work with me. Maybe I need an intervention? No, I didn't think so either.

Eve though it is difficult for some to understand, my filing system isn't really that difficult- I promise.



Important Documents
Items like health insurance documents, policy information, product information, and other records are in the average, run of the mill filing system. The folders are color coded according to purpose and alphabetized. Normal filing things here.

Items I need at a later date
Say, I have a meeting that I'll need to pull notes for. Maybe I need to take a record to the doctor at an appointment. It could even be a drawing that I will give to someone at a special occasion. These items are put into my 43 folders system. This is by far my favorite system and one that has saved me on countless occasions.

This system is ideal for those that are busy and have a lot of paperwork to keep up with. It is also perfect for mothers who have children in school. (Where did I put that permission slip?)

I enjoy this system because I often have notes or something that I need to retrieve for a meeting and I don't want to keep them tucked into my calendar for fear of losing them.

To read more about the 43 folders system, check out this video.

Items that I need to handle but it has to wait
I often have items that I need my husband's signature on, need to discuss with someone, or I need more information to handle it. Those items go into a pretty file box at my launch system (I promise to reveal this soon). I have a pretty pink damask basket that is the perfect size for some girly file folders. My file folders read: ASAP (I need more information, but it needs to be done soon); Chris (I need my hubby's signature or input), Econfina Press (I need to discuss something with mom), School (These are usually homeschool ideas or things that need to be filed, but I'm not in school mode at the moment), File (I need to file, but cannot get to it).
This is an ever evolving part of the system and gets updated quite regularly.

Mobile Office
I have a file envelope in my mobile office that has different purposes. One section is for ideas, one is for projects (a file inside the section for each project), one is for mail, and one is for upcoming projects (one folder for each project). Doing this guarantees that I am constantly looking at my projects I am currently working on and those that I need to get started on. The idea section irritates me when things are in it, so that guarantees that I will do the research done required to scrap the idea or get started on it. The mail section houses catalogs  magazines I want to look through, and mail that I need to work on. I don't like it when items are in this section either, so I take care of them quicker.

I do have one more place I file things, but that will come with the updated calendar post. Oh, and binders are a whole other post.

Do you file? What works for you?

Valentine's Day: Lunches from Pinterest and Funbites

 

I wrote about this amazing product last year, and still absolutely love it. I also received the heart funbites and wanted to share some fun with you. I wanted to share some ideas I found on Pinterest. Why not make your special guy or kiddos a special lunch for Valentine's Day? I love Valentine's day, so I will definitely be making my guys some fun lunches!

Source: bentoschoollunches.com via Holly on Pinterest

Source: tinyprincesslunchbox.com via Education on Pinterest

Source: bentoforkidlet.com via KeeleyMcGuire on Pinterest

Source: bentoriffic.wordpress.com via Sarah on Pinterest

I am absolutely in love with the idea of bento lunches. Even though my little guy is homeschooled, I think we could benefit from make ahead lunches- that would be one less thing to worry about every day.

Do you make lunches ahead?

What are some of your Valentine's Day traditions?

I Never Thought I Would Cover It

  

Did you see this on instagram earlier?

If you saw this, I'm sure that you want to know the story behind the tattoo, why I would want to cover it, and how I do it. Well, that's what I'm here for now!



When I was 22, I was doing some work promoting musicians, festivals, creating t-shirts, and selling body jewelry. This wasn't long before I met my husband, but I was the typical 22 year old that didn't have a care in the world (well, not a care that actually mattered in the grand scheme of things.) This was also the beginning of NighLon (although it has changed a bit since then)

I took a trip to Florida for Daytona Bike Week, expecting the time of my life. I had that time! There was a lot of partying and meeting new people.

I had an amazing logo that I was absolutely in love with and I wanted to immortalize this time of my life. I met an awesome tattoo artist that quickly became like an uncle and his apprentice was pretty awesome too.

I told them about my desire to make this time last forever and they came up with a concept for me. Why not make my logo a tattoo. Great idea! So, the morning before the long drive home, I got a tattoo in an ambulance! That's something not everyone can say! It was an amazing time, but me and my body have changed.

When my tattoo was done, it was strategically places so that it wouldn't be hard to cover it up with a shirt. I liked this about it. However, as I've gotten older and after having my son, it is harder to cover it now. Generally, I don't worry if it shows, but there are times that it is just inappropriate  So, I have been on the hunt for a cover up. I found nothing ... until I found the Veil Tattoo Camouflage Kit.

The Veil Tattoo Camouflage Kit is designed to be mixed for creating the perfect shade for cover up. If you take a look at my cover up, I didn't even mix them, just layered it on. Also, the photos are from my first attempt at the camouflage (I just waited to post until today). 

My tattoo is really colorful and solid. Also, the location has made it hard to cover in the past, because many cover ups rub off. This does not rub off and honestly, you can't feel it on. I thought it would feel like makeup caked on, but it doesn't. Also, unlike many companies, the directions are right on the website, so you can see if this is something you can handle before you even buy it. I am not a professional makeup artist, so if I can do it, I'm sure you can!

I am very impressed with this product and will depend on them to cover up in the future, for any situation. I only wish I had found the Veil Tattoo Camouflage Kit before my wedding. Thank you Veil for being the answer to this problem and for making my life a little easier. 

Disclaimer: I received a sample in exchange for my review, all opinions are my own. 

Put Some SHMILY In Your Marriage

In case you guys haven't noticed, I'm kind of a sap. I love romance, flowers, little I love yous, and especially Valentine's Day. My husband isn't a sap, but he loves how excited I get about Valentine's day and entertains me with romance. He may not be a sap, but he knows how to show me that he loves me. We are both always finding new ways to say "I love you" in fun, discreet ways. After all, even though we would shout it from a rooftop, love is private.

When I was introduced to SHMILY Coins, I thought it was adorable. The idea of hiding a wooden token in a lunch box, wallet, or even under a dinner plate or cup of coffee is a simple way of saying "See How Much I Love You!" It wasn't until I read the story behind SHMILY Coins (by the way, you really should read it!) that I was absolutely in love!

When I first received the coins, I wasn't quite sure how I would introduce SHMILY to my husband. I thought long and hard about it and it hit me. I folded the paper up and placed it inside the velvet bag. I then placed it on top of the hubby's xbox controller. This worked perfectly because he would see it and it wouldn't be obvious to everyone. Our little guy wouldn't see it either because he can't see where the controller is kept.

When the hubby picked up his controller that day, the little bag fell off. He picked it up and was very curious. He looked at the coin and had a smile on his face when he read it. Then he read the story. The story amazed him as much as it did me and we now have our own tradition. It has gone beyond the coins now. I write it in ketchup on his plate, sign it to him as he is going to work, and even write it on the bathroom mirror. SHMILY has become a fun little game for the two of us and has really revamped the romance in our lives. We are not publicly affectionate people, so this is a great way to say "I love you" at any time.

When my husband has done something especially sweet or thoughtful and I want to say thank you, I just walk by him and pop a coin in his pocket. This works beautifully because our son is in that stage that mommy and daddy are not allowed to hug or kiss without him being in the middle of it. No attention is brought to us, so we don't have to explain to the prince once again, that mommy and daddy are allowed to hug and kiss- let's face it, having that conversation ruins the mood.

This "game" reminds me of my mom hiding notes or a new pair of earrings in my school lunch. So, I know that as our little man gets older, we will have a SHMILY coin for him as well. There is also one in the mail on the way to my Mother's house (shh, don't tell her!) This coin can be utilized with anyone you have love for. Those we love need to know and be reminded. Growing up, I never left the house without a hug and "I love you" from my mother. This is something that I do with my own family. It doesn't matter if I am mad at my husband, busy as a hurricane, or my son is pitching a fit because he doesn't want me to leave. My family hears "I love you" with a hug and kiss before we are separated, even to go to the corner store. Why not use SHMILY as your own secret code for saying "I love you"?

All SHMILY coins are 100% wooden and made in the USA. No need to worry about add chemicals and poisons in them. They are also an inexpensive tradition. If ordering up to 9, they are $0.99 or $1.29 with the bag. There are even discounts when ordering several. What a great way to start a tradition. Maybe even tuck them into birthday cards and Christmas cards. I'm sure they will give your loved one a smile.

I am enjoying our new tradition and I'm sure you will too. As always, i cannot wait to see what the future holds.

Disclaimer: I received SHMILY Coins in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.