Saturday, February 27, 2010

LAST DAY TO VOTE!

Hey everyone! First off, thank you SO SO much to everyone who has already voted for me. But if anyone hasn't, or looked at the link and said, "Nah. Don't have the time. Don't care." Please reconsider! It takes less than 30 seconds. 

Seriously.

You just click the link, 


Find my name on the list, select the bubble next to my name, scroll down to the bottom of the list, and click the "VOTE" button. 

Thank you so so so much for all your support!

Thursday, February 25, 2010

News of Note

Emily rolled over today.

It was in no way on purpose. She was lying on her tummy on the floor, and I was talking to her from above. She looked up at me, laughed and leaned a little bit, and gravity did the rest. But I still sprinted/galloped/frolicked to the back of our apartment to get Kirby. She hasn't done it again yet.

Figures.

 
I think Emily is easing into the phase where she hates going to bed for fear of missing out. Twice already we have had to lie down with her on our chests before she finally calmed down and went to sleep. Kind of frustrating, but sweet at the same time. And hey--it gives me an excuse to relax and watch the olympics! Plus it results in darling pictures like this:



And this picture? Well, I just think it's fun.

 
In other news... 

 I found a super yummy snack option on SparkPeople.com. Remember how you recommended Spark People, Rachel? Well, ironically I was already acquainted! I looked to see if they had an app for my iPod touch, and sure enough! 

But ANYWAYS...

It's pretty easy to make, and so yummy! Plus, it's got just enough sweetness to satisfy any sweet craving, while not overloading with calories. 

INGREDIENTS:
3 soft taco size tortillas (6 inch)
1 tsp margarine (52% vegetable oil)
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (or to desired taste)

DIRECTIONS:
Mix sugar and cinamon together; set aside.
Lightly, but completely, spread margarine on tortillas.
Cut each tortilla into eight pieces, keeping them in tortilla shape. Pizza cutters work well.
Sprinkle each tortilla with cinnamon sugar.
Bake in preheated oven at 325 degrees for 15 - 18 minutes or until crispy throughout.
Cool and enjoy! Great alone or with fresh fruit or frozen yogurt.
1 serving = 8 crisps
Number of servings :: 3
Calories per serving :: 102.4

Personal notes:
I wanted to try wheat tortillas, for the extra fiber, filling-ness, and healthiness. I couldn't find any 6 inch, ones, so mine were more like 8 inches, so I only used 2.

Also--I had butter already softened, and I didn't want to bother with margarine, so the ones I made had more fat. One of my wheat tortillas alone was 120 calories, I think. So, I figured it out and I think for one of my servings with butter, and a larger whole wheat tortilla, but with the same amount of sugar/cinnamon it was just under 200 per serving. Not bad.

I tried this recipe with both my wheat tortillas and with white tortillas. Both were delicious. Obviously, the wheat ones had that more "healthy" taste. Yeah. You know the one. But they were also more filling! I didn't calculate the calories with the ones made with white tortillas.

Also--for any of you wanting to reduce the calories even more:
You can apparently use something like "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" spray, which has no calories.
And you can use Splenda, or some other artificial sweetener instead of sugar.
But it seemed to me that the tortilla carries most of the calories.

Personally, I figure 200 calories for a filling, sweet snack is pretty darn good.

I'll try and get a delicious picture next time I make these. Probably tomorrow. :) I forgot to do it last time. I've made it three times already!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

PLEASE VOTE FOR ME!

First off, sorry to any of you who have already gotten this message. :) I asked my aunt to email one to all of the family, I posted about it on my facebook page, posted it in my facebook status, wrote a facebook note about it. Yeah. I would really love to win this. But to those of you who haven't yet heard...

I have the chance to win a free mentoring session with a FABULOUS local photographer, Brooke Snow. Originally, she was going to just put our names into random.org, or something similar, but she decided not to leave it up to chance after all.

Whoever gets the most votes will be awarded the session, which means I can't do it alone! Only one vote is allowed per computer, so please vote from as many as you can! And encourage friends, roommates, and family to vote, too! 

Or... just get on their computers and vote for them! ;)

To vote, click 


It's super easy. Just select my name from the list (Lauren Davison) and click "vote"!

Thank you all so much for taking the time to do this. This opportunity is huge, and I am crossing my fingers! AND TOES...

Monday, February 22, 2010

Still Going Strong.

Yup. I'm still pluggin' away with my weight loss goal. I think I'm going to make it! That is, if my body keeps losing like it is. I really really hope I don't plateau.

Have I mentioned how terrified I am of failing at this? Yeah. Terrified.

But I accidentally watched Studio 5 on KSL today (accidentally because I've taken to keeping KSL/NBC on almost all day, for whenever the olympics come on...) and they introduced some awesome arm exercises that I have fallen in love with! I tried them out this morning and LOVE them. The "power curls" just about killed me, and the pretzel is deadly. But awesome. Here's the link to the instructions if any of you are interested...


Cause seriously. I've been walking, and doing pilates, and cutting some calories. But arms? Beyond how much they are "worked" in pilates (which does help the arms, don't get me wrong), I haven't really focused on them. 

Oh yeah. At the end of the pilates DVD I use, they do the "pilates push-ups." I hate them. Wanna know why? Because my arms are weak. Which is a bummer. Because they used to be super tough in high school.  But now--with these exercises? Boo.Yah. Y'all better brace yourselves, because I'm about to get the buffest arms in the world!

I also accidentally (same reason as above...) saw Rachael Ray make a delicious-looking Steak and Eggs recipe which I will have to try now. I'll let you know how it goes. :)

I just turned the TV off. I don't want to accidentally watch the news about a woman who was murdered. Nuff said.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Settled.

Well, I think this is it.

For a while, at least. Whaddaya think?
Yes, I'm talking about my blog template...

If you don't comment... Well...
This is what Emily and I think of that!


Friday, February 19, 2010

ReVamping

So... I assume most of you use Google Reader or something similar to track all the blogs you follow, which means this will mean nothing to you. But for any of you who actually travel to my blog to read it,

DON'T BE ALARMED.

I am switching things up around here... Trying to find a template I really love and a new name for the blog.

Any suggestions? Hahah. I would love to hear what y'all think our blog should be named... Let me know! :)

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Life is Good...

You know those hats and shirts and stuff that say "Life is good" with some cute little doodle picture? I have always loved those, because whenever I see them I think--Yeah. Life IS good. No matter how bad things seem to get, if we take a step back and look at our blessings--they always seem to outweigh all the tough stuff.

Not sure why I have never bought me one of those...

Have I mentioned I LOVE being a stay-at-home mom? Love love love.

Emily coos at her toys. The more tired she gets, the more it sounds like yelling. But it's still cute. :)

As far as fitness news, I have been doing great! When I weighed myself this morning I was at 171.4! The lowest I've been for a long time! WOOHOO! 11.4 more pounds to go! :)

Also--when I did pilates yesterday I was able to touch my toes while doing the saw.

Boo.Yah.

Huh. Kirby is microwaving corn dogs right now, and they are whistling. What the...

And because posts are always better with a cute face...

















Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Day 7

Emily and I went for a walk today because it was GOR.GEOUS. And here's what I found!

...  leftovers ...


And how incredibly delicious is this tree!?


And just a heads up :: I will no longer be posting my one-a-day on my personal blog. I feel kind of silly posting it on both my photo blog and my personal blog... so! If you like seeing them make sure you check them out HERE! :)

Day 6

Yesterday's shot... Forgot to post it!

President's Day was great though!

Pajamas. Storytime. Starcraft. Olympics. Movies.


Sunday, February 14, 2010

Incapacitation.

My entire right shoulder region is completely useless. I tried to lift a jug of water to pour Kirby a drink at dinner, and I had to use both hands to lift it. So pathetic.

But it felt really good.

Playing racquetball again. After about 10 months.

Love.

Day 5

... for a rainy day...


Saturday, February 13, 2010

Day 4

...wireless...





Day 3

I'm thankful for thumb sucking! Because it's cute... AND convenient...

And yes... this was taken on the point-and-shoot. All I had at the time...

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Day 2

 So one of my best friends has a husband.

He is talented up the wazoo.

I was looking around his website and saw that he has an entire flikr album devoted to textures. And I thought to myself, "I want one of those..."

Because yes.

I am obsessed with texture.

So here's my first texture shot.

 

Yum.my.

Day 1 (Yesterday, technically)

So... I wasn't able to get these pictures up yesterday, but I DID take them yesterday.

As I was thinking about what I wanted to take a picture of, I started thinking of things I'm thankful for. And yes, I'm thankful for my young adult fiction. :) I like to be able to snuggle up with a blanket and just read something enjoyable--not something I have to focus all my energies on reading. And yes. I know three of them are by the same author, and no, these are not the only young adult fiction books I have read or own. They were just easily accessible. :)


Next up: The partially-full glass of Brick Oven Root Beer. First off, if you haven't had it, it is divine. So yes, I'm thankful for it, but that is not actually the reason it became one of my shots. As I mentioned a couple posts ago, I'm trying to reach a target weight and in order to do so I've been more careful about what I eat--particularly what are commonly called "empty calories." Unfortunately for me, soda falls in this category. 

For anyone who is curious, 8 fluid ounces of Brick Oven Root Beer has 130 calories. Not a huge amount until you consider how easy it is to down way more than 8 oz and it does absolutely nothing to keep you full!

HOWEVER.
I digress.

Yesterday I had done particularly well managing my food intake, so I decided to reward myself with a treat. Not wanting to overindulge, I only filled my glass up an inch or so. And then I laughed to myself because it looked like when people in the movies only put an inch of liquor in their cups. 

And because I think I'm SO funny, I took a picture of it. :)

 

And that completes Day 1. 

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Confession.

Sometimes I don't put pants on my little girl. Because I like to see these:


Does that make me a bad mom??

Goals.

So, I'm entirely opposed to New Years resolutions. Why?

Because it's cliche. And I'm just silly that way.

Ironically, though, the lesson my young women received the week before New Year's was on goal setting. It was a great lesson and got me all fired up to make a goal and really follow through with it. I was so excited about it that I didn't realize it was just a couple days before the holiday! BAH! I had told Kirby about the lesson, and he requested that I summarize it for our Family Home Evening.

So we made some goals. And they so happened to fall right around New Years. Don't judge. :)

That being said, we now have 9 copies of our goals, ways to achieve the goals, and rewards posted strategically all over our apartment. I'm looking at one right now above our computers.

There's another on the bathroom mirror.

Above the kitchen sink.

There are a couple strategically hung from the ceiling where we walk often. As in, hanging down so they barely brush our heads.

etc.
etc.
etc.

One of my goals (which I was hesitant to make) involved weight loss. Why was I hesitant?

Because it's cliche. :)

But also--I've never tried to lose weight before. I have had goals regarding fitness and such, but never any that involved a target weight. So I was scared. Scared that I will fail because I don't know how!

My goal is to get down to how much I weighed in high school (160, for anyone who is wondering...).

Side note: I find it so ironic how much my body image changes. In high school I was happy with my body, but recognized that I weighed more than other girls. I am tall. I am curvy. Deep down I wished I weighed a bit less, but I was athletic and felt good physically, so I never cared enough to take action. Now, looking back, I'm thinking--Was I crazy!? I LOOKED GOOD! :) I wonder if twenty years from now I will be thinking the same thing about my body now. Probably. And that is one thing that helps me keep my body image in check.

Have I made progress towards my goal? No. Not really. My mini goals to help me achieve my target weight involve me walking briskly at least 1/2 an hour each day, and doing pilates at least 3 times a week. Shortly after making our goals, Kirby got a cold, and then I got a cold... and our motivation and drive was shot. But last week I walked Monday-Thursday (Friday was nasty weather wise, so my mom and I opted out) and did Pilates three times! And this week I walked yesterday and today, and I did Pilates yesterday. SO... I'm back on track! I can already tell a difference in the way my body feels and looks, but I haven't seen any significant weight loss. I keep telling myself that it takes time, but I get so impatient! I'm sure this is why so many people's weight loss goals fail! We all want instant results!

That being said, a friend of mine posted a status on Facebook asking for suggestions regarding weight loss, and a lot of the girls that responded said that exercise wasn't enough. That the only way to really lose weight was by cutting calories.

So here's my question.
What do you think??? What has worked for you???

You know what the funny thing is? The point of this post was in no way to discuss my weight loss goal. But there you have it. I'm calling out for your help!

The actual point of my post was to tell you of a NEW goal I'm making as of today. I am going to take at least one picture every day. I want to stretch myself. I love taking pictures of Emily (obviously), so I'm going to try and photograph other stuff.

Pictures of our apartment.

Little details.

Outside stuff.

It should be fun. I'm going to try to post one each day!

Day 1 starts tomorrow. Wish me luck!
 

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