Bloggest Loser -- Week 1

Okay, people.





It was our first week of our weight loss competition. Holy cow, could I have had any more temptations thrown at me than I did this week? (BTW, we are most likely delayed in the closing for our house because of the confusion of my maiden/married names. We were promised we wouldn't be charged the usual per diems for closing extensions. We should be signing the papers by next Friday.)



My eating was horrible. My exercising was sporadic. My stress level was HIGH and I justified the poor eating and little time exercising. I had a 1.38% weight loss this week.



So, inspire me. First, go here -----> calculate weight loss.



Next, leave your comment with your percentage weight loss. And, as always, add whatever other comments you have. What were your highs and lows?

Also, to keep it fair, I think we need to have our percentages turned in for the week by Monday evening so we're not getting too far into the week. And, remember, remember, remember this first weight you are entering. It will be the weight we'll use at our halfway check-in and our final weigh in.

Now, to some fun stuff. If you're watching The Biggest Loser, what are some of your calls for the Final Four? I'm not decided on this one yet. But, I love Sam and Koli. Also, I can't wait for make over week. I'd love to see Daris with a new 'do. I really like him too. And, I missed the first half of this last episode due to a DVR issue, but I did tune in soon enough to cry with O'Neal. Really, it's amazing how watching someone else's struggles can put your own into perspective. Do you think Vicky was the right one to vote off? I think she didn't get a chance to really "get" it, but I didn't want Sunshine to go.

And be sure to vote in the poll about exercise. We'll see if I can think of enough things for us to vote on each week.

One final thought (from Josh's cousin's Facebook status):

"I wish I was as thin as I was when I thought I was fat."

Stressed To The Gills!!!

Things are slowly coming together for the house. S.L.O.W.L.Y. I appreciated Michelle's comment about David's letter about his legal name. You'll never guess what the biggest problem is. MY NAME!!!

Evidently, it is impossible for the government (because we are, unfortunately, trying to use a government financing program to buy this house) to figure out that I got married and changed my name. And it was legal too.

Yesterday I sent them a letter explaining that I legally changed my name when I married -- almost exactly 11 years ago!! It's not like we just got married a year or two ago. It's been ELEVEN YEARS!!

Today I had to give them a copy of my Social Security card. What's tomorrow? Our marriage license? Witness statements from our parents? A DNA sample?

I'm also upset because our tax return is being delayed. We don't need it for the closing of the house, but it sure was going to be nice to do several things around our new home before we moved in. Now they'll have to wait a while longer.

Today the government is not my friend. So glad we don't have to rely on them for every aspect of our lives.... {Insert your own witty, sarcastic retort here.}

Mortgage Murmurings

Warning: This is a long one.

Tonight my status on Facebook reads:

"You think that because I'm a movie star I don't have feelings. Well you're wrong. I'm an actress. I've got all of them!"

In case you didn't recognize it, it's a quote from Goldie Hawn in First Wives' Club. One of the best movies ever. And one of the best characters ever.

I'm not a movie star. Although, I was in a film student's final project. I played a bank teller. I never saw the movie, but I'd be shocked if I didn't end up on the cutting room floor. Anyway. My point is I've been feeling a lot of emotions lately. And, unfortunately, most of them stem from my frustrations with our future mortgage company.

Less than three weeks before our closing date we were told the underwriter had approved us and we just needed to provide some more information in writing. Fine. We gave all the information they asked for by 10am the next morning (we had been on our way to the Phoenix airport when we got the call).

The weekend came and went. No word. We figured all was well. Monday, no word. All must still be well. Then came Tuesday.

Suddenly we needed to provide them with additional information and we found out for the first time that we needed to complete a homeowners' education course. Here's where I began to get really frustrated. At the beginning of March when we began this search for own home, we signed up for this education course just in case we would need it. The classes generally fill quickly. So, to work around Josh's schedule, I enrolled us in a class that was to be held weeks away at the end of March. That was tough to find a day off that would work. But, I did it. Then we found this house and the class wasn't required, so I cancelled the class. I was fine with that. That meant Josh and I got a date instead of spending eight hours in a classroom in Phoenix on a Saturday.

So, when we were told fifteen days before our closing date that the underwriter wanted us to complete this course, I about freaked. How were we going to do this and get it to the underwriter in time for them to take it to the funding people in time to get it to the title people in time for us to close on time? Are you catching that I've been feeling like we are running out of time????

Luckily, Josh found an online version of the course. This class is usually free, but to expedite our access to the course, we had to pay $10. Whatever. Josh took the course and we submitted it within four hours of being told we had to take it. Take that, Mr Underwriter.

We figured we were done until the next morning when we had to sign some more papers and submit some more info. We were told everything would be submitted and taken care of. Silly me. I believed them.

Thursday and Friday came and went. So did the weekend. No word. Then this morning they wanted YET MORE information from us. How much more info can we give them??? I swear it seems like they want our life stories:

Dear Mr Underwriter: My favorite color is green. I don't like body odor. When I was six I was bitten by a dog on the back of my head. I don't really know how to swim. And if you ask me for my bra size, I'll be forced to knee you.

We close in 8 days. The underwriter accepted everything this afternoon (that's the official word). We may actually close escrow Monday. I don't really know what that means, but I know it's one of the last things we need to do to get the keys to our new house.

To sum it up: Buying a house = Emotional Highs & Emotionl Lows.

Sunday Thoughts

And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

Ether 12:27

This verse was mentioned in church today. It goes along very well with how I've been feeling lately. It's one of the reasons I want to truly push myself to lose weight. And be a better mom. And keep my house cleaner. And be a better wife.

It seems my weaknesses stare me right in the face quite often. And I want to win and overcome those weaknesses. I will stare back at them and see who blinks first. Unfortunately, having a staring contest with your weaknesses is like having a staring contest with a statue. I keep losing.

I'm tired of losing. I'm going to start working on some of the things I know I can improve and pray for the ability to discover the things I don't yet understand. With Heavenly help, faith, humility and work, I'll be the woman (including mom and wife) I want to be.

The Amazing Times of Shelly Johnson

It's amazing.....

...how much better a vacuum works when the belt is replaced.

...how long it takes a person to realize the belt in their vacuum needs to be replaced.

...how quickly a one-year-old can walk onto a football field when a fifth grader is running toward her.

...how slowly a mom feels like she's moving when her baby is about to be creamed by fifth graders playing football.

....how quickly a kitchen floor gets dirty after it's been mopped.

....how long it takes to get the gumption up to clean the kitchen floor for the second time of the day.

Yep, my life is pretty amazing.

Biggest Loser Prep

I think we've got a small amount of interest in this, but just one person playing along will help me get going. Here are the details of our own weight loss competition. Anyone is invited to join at anytime. We're just going to begin officially this coming Sunday.

Ready?

Here we go!

The Competition:

1. This will last 12 weeks. Our final weigh-in will be July 10. We're going to have a Half-Way check-in on May 29, the six week mark. That way we can re-motivate if necessary.

2. Eat healthily, exercise according to your schedule, and drink plenty of water.

3. Whoever loses the highest percentage of weight by July 10 will be the winner, or the Biggest Loser.

The Rules:

1. You don't have to watch The Biggest Loser to compete. It's going to be over in the next few weeks anyway. But it's a great motivator, if you need one.

2. You must make sure you are eating enough food to be healthy, generally at least 1200 calories/day. No eating disorders allowed.

Helpful Hints:

1. If you do want to track your calories, the best website I've found is sparkspeople.com. You do have to sign up for the site, but it's free. They have suggested meal plans or you can enter your own. You can also make sure you're drinking enough water, track your exercising, and add other goals such as hours of sleep a day or remembering to take a daily vitamin.

2. We will post our percentages lost once a week, probably Saturdays or Sundays. Choose a day of the week to weigh yourself each week. I'm going to post a link to a calculator that figures it out for you, so don't get intimidated by that thought. You won't need to post anything but your percentage, NO REAL WEIGHT TOTALS REQUIRED. But, you're welcome to share if you so desire.

3. Take a picture of yourself this weekend. Something that shows off your current shape. YOU WON'T HAVE TO POST THIS. This is just for you so you can keep track on how your body is changing. Now, if by the end of this you are ecstatic about how you look and want to post the before/after pics, do it. But for now, just do it for yourself.

4. Measure yourself. Measure your chest, waist, and hips. Again, YOU WON'T HAVE TO POST THIS. But, as an additional help, check out -----> this link <----- to get a beginning calculation of your body fat. We'll be using the weight percentage for the competition, but I reserve the right to add the amount of body fat lost anytime during the competition.

5. Have fun! Summer is coming and with kids getting out of school, schedules will change and things will be harder to keep routine. Just do your best! Don't get discouraged! We can do this!!

Talented T-Fairy

The other night the Tooth Fairy came and visited Abby. This T-Fairy has some skills.

Pardon the darkness of the photo (I've been too busy to remember to retake it). Here is Abby with her butterfly dollar bill.

The girls have also gotten.....

an elephant.....

a shirt....

and a heart.

My Tooth Fairy didn't show off these skills. Then again, my T-Fairy didn't give me more than a quarter, either.

The Biggest Loser Invitation

During tonight's Biggest Loser, Bob said that offices all over the country are doing their own Biggest Loser competitions. Got me thinking.....

I need to restart my final 20-lb weight loss.

Again.

I need some fuel for my fire.

Does anyone want to play "Biggest Loser" with me? I sound like a little kid trying to rally friends to play Red Rover or something. ("Come play at my house!!!") But I need my competitive streak to pull me through this stagnation I keep wallowing in.

The goal would be for us to track our calories (a minimum of 1200/day) and do some sort of daily exercise (aerobic and strength training combination). Then, each week we'll post our percentages lost.

So, here's the deal:

1. We start Sunday, so get yourself prepared.

2. Please let me know if you're interested so I don't feel like no one's playing with me (I hate being the loner kid on the playground). If you really aren't into it, that's cool. You can tell me that too.

3. We need to figure out what the Biggest Loser gets. The winner needs something. Right?

4. How long should we compete? Three months? More?

5. Take a before picture and at the end we'll do after pics. (You won't have to show them, but it will help us track our progress.)

Wanna do this??? Please???