MEET MY NEW BABY GIRL! ........ HELGA

After about 4 1/2 hours of backbreaking labor

this beautiful girl was brought on this earth.

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Born May 11th 2009 she is truly a beauty!

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She loves the sunshine, helping with dinner,

and being groomed by mama.

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She is about 6X7 feet and weighs God knows

how many lbs!

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Her name is Helga!

Awwwww! Isn't she beautiful??

Helga is an herb garden brought to you courtesy of my cute

hubby that obviously listens very well!

You may recognize my mother's day gift!

So, on Monday, after 4 1/2 hours in the sun and a

very painful and unsightly sunburn to my lower back

between where my capris and my shirt sit when bending

over, she was all done and put together.

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I named her Helga because:

1- Rob makes us name EVERYTHING! Just ask him.

2 - It's a perfectly hideous name that always makes me smile. :)

(No offense to any of you readers named Helga, although, I have to say that

if you are you probably already know what I mean.)

3 - I don't know, I guess she just looks like a Helga.

4 - She reminds me of my German Grandmother

(not named Helga by the way) and the fact that as a child she used

to have an herbal tea for just about any ailment you could think of!

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So there she is, in all of her glory!

I am looking forward to using her in many recipes!

16 LBS TO GO!! - CHEATING

I was not excited to weigh myself this morning because I knew I hadn't done well last week. Of course I had all the usual excuses already covered:

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But it was St. Paddy's Day!!

I had to have at least one beer..... or 3.

That soda bread was just too good to let it go to waste.

That's why I had to eat nearly the whole loaf!

But it was the first BBQ of the season!

It would have been a shame to not indulge in all the

yummy food and beer that goes with it!

So I was fairly shocked when I stepped on the scale this morning and had not only NOT put back on the 3 pounds I lost the week before but actually lost an extra one! YEAH ME!!

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I am attributing this victory to one diet rule that has always stuck in my head.

It is OK to cheat.... as long as you move forward and get back on your diet as quickly as possible!

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Keeping this in mind I still woke up every morning ready to lose weight and ate a very healthy breakfast and lunch. I still kept my motivation and went to the gym. And I still did my best to control my portions at dinner time! So although I set myself back a little each time I did cheat....I didn't let it set me back all the way.

17 LBS TO GO!!!!

Last week I made it my goal to lose at least 20 pounds.

I am 5'3"and according to the scale last week I weighed in at 152 lbs. This is what I weighed about 4 years ago before I started weight watchers. I lost the weight then but have put it back on. Hopefully writing this and reporting my progress will help me stay on target.

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With a history of obesity in my family I felt it was best for me to put an end to the weight gain now. Nearly every woman in my family weighs somewhere between 180-300 lbs with many health issues. I want to break that cycle for both me and my daughter. According to the charts I am about 10 lbs overweight now, but I have seen from my family how that can quickly turn into a lot more. I also realize that the older I get, the harder it will be to lose it. So I am making more than just a temporary change for swimsuit season.... I am making a lifestyle change for life.

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The work is beginning to pay off.

According to my scale this morning I lost 3 pounds last week!

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Losing weight is about 80% what you eat and 20% how active you are. So, while I did work out hard 3 days last week, I contribute this weight loss to the change in my eating habits last week.

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I changed 4 major things about my diet.

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1 - Alcohol. I usually have something nearly every night. Not enough to get saucy, but maybe one cocktail, glass of wine, or a beer. Last week I stuck to one glass of wine on Wednesday and Friday, and that was about it.

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2 - Water. I am awful about drinking enough water. I have to make myself do it, but once I get into the habit my body craves it so it becomes easier. Last week I focused on my water intake making sure that I drank a glass before every meal, which helps you feel fuller faster.

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3 - Snacking. I love to snack. Last week I scheduled my snacking which made it easier to allow myself to snack without ruining my diet or feeling guilty. By deciding when to snack and what to snack on, I prevented myself from overeating during snack time.

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4 - Dinner. The worst meal by far for me is dinner. As a family we eat pretty healthy, and I cook nearly every night. The problem is that I have no willpower. On a typical day I won't eat well throughout the day and then I will load up on dinner because I am so hungry. So last week I worked hard to eat really healthy throughout the day, then when dinner time came, I fixed up everyone's plates, with a smaller portion on mine, then put the food away. This helped me control my portions and it was also nice to not have so much to clean up after dinner.

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This week I will stick to these changes and make a few more.

* I will workout at least 4 days this week.

* I will begin taking a multivitamin everyday along with a green tea supplement.

* I will be more active on the days I am not working out.

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I am excited and energized!! I already feel better, stronger, and less hungry!!

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Thanks to my husband, friends, and family for the support they have given me.

Stay tuned for my progress.

20 LBS TO GO!!!

Today I am going to practice what I preach and make an investment in myself.

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Today I begin my goal to lose 20 lbs! I don't know how long it will take me but I hope to have it accomplished in 10-12 weeks. That averages out to about 1.5-2 lbs per week, which is healthy.

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I am posting this for accountability, and because I think that this will be a great way to log my progress.

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My plan is plain and simple: To put in less calories than I burn in a day.

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Doctors agree that no matter what plan, personal trainer, book, or DVD you follow, this is the underlying goal of all of them. Some ways are healthier than others and that is why I have chosen to follow the Weight Watchers model. I have been on the WW program before and lost weight. I found that it was a great program that was easy to follow. I will be attending meetings in the near future but to start I will begin using some of my material from before.

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Every Monday I will post my progress beginning with how many pounds I have left.

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If there is anyone out there that would like to do this with me, let me know.

We can link to each other's posts and be a great support system for one another!

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Here's to a healthier me!

Wish me luck!!