been a lot going on, continued....

So,
as I said before we've spent a lot of time with family lately.  Then, of course, when you are around a lot of family (or people for that matter), you will of course pass germs around.  And boy did we get some GERMS.  It started out as a lovely little sore throat and sinus/cough thing we all had.  THEN it morphed into a stomach bug...with my poor little Isla getting the worst of it.  I swear the already skinny little thing looked like she was in a concentration camp for a little while there.  Thank goodness for whole milk and it's ability to make you fatter :).  She's looking much better now.  Finally....FINALLY! we are all better.  So if you've been sick, know that I love you....but STAY AWAY!  at least for a little while so we can bask in being healthy for a short time.

 Other than that, it's been back to business around here.  We didn't do much for valentines day.  We never do.  I wish I could be better about it and go all out with the crafty valentines decor, etc.  Maybe someday....just not yesterday....  You know, to me (and I imagine it's because I have four small children), but it is just too soon after christmas and new years and all of the back to back holidays.  I'm still worn out from all of that.  So my big thing lately has been organizing and purging.  I've decided that I can't jump into any big projects until I have this place organized.  First of all, there is just no place to work.  That garage of ours is craaaazy.  I want it to become a lovely workshop for all of my new tools, oh and a laundry room (new plan is to move the washer and dryer out there to make room for something really great that I'll tell you about later....stop it Anna! getting ahead of yourself again!), and then just space....ahhh SPACE!  Anyways, so I've been working on room to room to room getting things in order...and catching up on a mountain of laundry (yikes).  So!  I know all of you that really want to see Isla's bed hurry up and get finished since I went on and on about it (what maybe three people that read this blog, lol) sorry....I've told myself that it HAS to wait until I have a organized place to build it in.  I do have all of the materials though...and it's just KILLING me to not get started.  So that has actually been a big driving force for the new found motivation I've had.

In other news, I've started a diet.  I mean full blown diet.  before I was just doing my best to change my and my family's eating habits for the better...but was never strenuously restricting myself.  Now I'm full blown on phase 1 of the South Beach Diet.  I know it's an oldie, but I've always used it when I wanted to drop some weight and it's always been a miracle for me.  I have made it through two days successfully (that's a lot seeing as how the first day my husband tried to sabotage me by BAKING COOKIES...really, Brent!  and the second day was Valentines day....I hid my chocolates!  lol.  So, I'm happy with my will power.  Really, I am very glad that we've been "eating right" for about three or four months now as a family, because it makes the hard stuff a lot easier.  I feel like I have successfully changed our lifestyle instead of just doing a diet, and then stopping and going back to eating crap.  Hello yoyo!  I will post more about some of the other stuff I've been trying as well...but I think if I continue talking about all of that, I'm afraid the three of you that will read this...will be asleep :)

Would you like to see some pictures of me through the years yoyo-ing?  that sounds like fun, right?  Keep in mind, I've been having four babies too...

1998

 1999

 1999

2000 - in love and getting fat

 2001 - just married and getting fatter

 2002- whoah, am I ever fat!  lol, that's chase growing in there :) Halloween and little cousin Cassidy with me there...

 2003- yoyo....skinny again

 doing alright in 2004

 prego again in 2005

2006 -after baby and hiding from the camera but you can see I'm pretty hefty

getting better a little later- 2006

 2007--yoyo again

 me and grandma the end of 2007 (miss her!)

 2008- geez I want to get back to this size...

 2008 in the fall....was pregnant again

 2009 after having Isla- look at her cute frog feet!

 2009 a few months after baby....fat people should NOT wear shiny shirts...wow, anna...wow...

 2010-Isla's first birthday.  Had lost some weight, but not all....and was secretly pregnant in this picture.

 2010 after having Sophie...double the baby weight!

 Christmas-time 2010 not much better

 2011 still really fat....and with a bum knee, beautiful...

 Easter 2011

 Christmas time 2011- most recent picture of me that I can find...yeah, finally losing a little weight

Will post a picture once I've been on my diet a while and see what I can do this time.

NO MORE YOYO-ING!!!!  I'm ready to be healthy and fit :) I want to last to see my grandkids grow up.  Hope that was mildly entertaining.  I realize I went a little overboard with the pictures, but it was fun going back through all of them today.  I re-lived some great memories :)

xoxo
Anna

****disclaimer****
I just wanted to add that I am not getting down on myself.  I love myself the way that I am and am completely happy in my own skin.  I thought it would be an entertaining idea to have a look at how I've changed over the years.  It was fun, I enjoyed going over my adult life in succession today.  I'm obviously more interested in being healthy above all else.  I'm comfortable in my skin no matter what size (something that's taken years to arrive at, I'll admit).  I just didn't want anyone to think this was a pity party.  I'm trying to get in shape and blogging about this is a way of holding myself accountable.  So, hope there weren't any misconceptions.  Thanks!