Monday, September 30, 2013

Cha Cha Cha Changes

October is going to be the month for changes for me. I woke up this weekend and decided I wasn’t happy with the way my life was going. There isn’t really anything wrong with my life. There are just certain things that I don’t like. And why should I continue living with that. I’m an adult capable of making changes for the better and sticking to them.

I read a while ago that it takes 21-30 days to break a bad habit or to form a new one. That might very well be an old wives tale but I like the idea of giving myself a month to start and make changes. At the end of the month I can evaluate what worked, what didn’t, and how to proceed. Having a smaller goal also helps me see that I am accomplishing something. So instead of wanting to lose 60 lbs overall I can say 3-5 lbs in one month. That goal is much more doable. So here is my top list of things I want to change this month:

  1. Stop eating out so much. I signed up for Mint.com several months and have the app on my phone. It is constantly yelling (not literally cuz that would be weird) that I am spending way past my limit on eating out. If I was to look at how many times I eat out in one week … I think I would faint so I will just say it’s way too much. Unfortunately eating out is so convenient. With working full time and running around after work for gymnastics, swimming, and soccer (yes I became that mom) and countless other appointments the last thing I want to think about is coming home and cooking a full dinner. So I’m going to pull out my crock pot. For those days I have something happening I will put something on and have it ready to go when we get home. Piece of cake. My second biggest offense is breakfast. There are several fast food places within a block from work. In the morning I’m usually running late so stopping at one of these place is so easy. But I found something on Pinterest the other day which should really help me. Did you know you can freeze breakfast burritos? This weekend I cooked up 3 different types of burritos. They are ready to go each morning and I can pop them in the microwave when I get to work.

  1. Lose weight. I'm fat. First step is admitting you have a problem. Hopefully #1 will help with this. Eating out doesn’t help maintain good weight. I am so unhappy with the way I look I never take pictures. I don’t have any with the baby except a few candid shots people have taken and I only have a few head shots with Princess. I want to get married in March (I know I was suppose to get married earlier this year but there is a long story as to why I haven’t) and I have my dream dress already. Unfortunately it’s too small for me. So I want to lose 3-5 lbs this month. I know I can do it. I’ve done it before. I just need to stick to it.

  1. Organize my home. I think purging all of the unnecessary things in my life will help me feel “free”. In order to help my accomplish this I am doing a couple things. First, I am NOT going to buy anything new for the month except the essentials. Shopping freeze! Second, I need to purge eBay items. So for this month I’m going to run a lot of auctions starting at a low start price. If I’ve had something for a while I want it sold or gone. I will relist each item  twice. If it doesn’t sell it will be donated. I buy most things for a dollar or two so I will still be making a good profit on the items. What I have left over will be organized in the garage. If I showed you a picture of my garage now you would scream and call Hoarders. I want to look like Kari from She Thrifts.  Her storage is so organized.

  1. Save money. I think #1 will help with this also. Eating out costs a lot. And I still have a dream of being a slum lord (but a nice one). I can’t buy property if I don’t have any money. But also Christmas is right around the corner and I have a wedding to pay for soon. My goal is to put $250 into savings. 

The main change this month is out of my control. We have court this month for baby on October  23rd. They are suppose to move to terminate services on both parents. I am praying it happens finally. This month the baby will be 14 months and she will be with us 13 months. I just want something finalized. Living in limbo is so hard. I don’t think court will go easy. I know Dad will contest. And even if he doesn’t he has 2 months to appeal. But very rarely are the decisions made the department over turned. So at least it will be a step in the right direction. The mom has said that she has come to terms with losing the baby and is happy that she will be in a good home. She can see how much we love her and care for her.

I have learned from past experiences that sharing your goals with people helps you be accountable so I am sharing with you. And this is something that I have never done, but I am posting a full length picture of myself. I hope by March (wedding) my weight loss will be noticeable. Now don’t laugh.



7 comments:

  1. All are great goals! You can do it!

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  2. You can do it! I was always the skinny girl with the disgustingly good metabolism. Then it can to a screeching hault the day I turned 25 (plus I had 3 kids lol) so 45 lbs heavier i started a diet about 3 months ago and have lost 15 lbs...and if I can lose weight anyone can. And you are absolutely right not eating out helps both money and weight. We are purging our ebay stuff also....I'm cheering you on from over here! And now you have a whole bunch of readers worth of accountability :)

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  3. Donna in Warrenton VAOctober 1, 2013 at 9:46 AM

    Those are great goals and thanks for sharing your picture! I know it's hard to look at your own picture but sometimes having that picture and a goal to weigh less is what it takes. I love hearing your stories about your daughters. I just pray that you get to keep the baby. She looks so sweet in her pictures. I'm sending good thought and prayers your way on both your goals and for the baby.

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  4. Well, I think you're beautiful. If losing weight will make you feel better and fit into that dress, that's great, but you will always be beautiful inside and out no matter how much you weigh. :)

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  5. You are beautiful! And, you are a strong, positive, and loving mom!

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  6. You are lovely inside and out, but if working and reaching these new goals brings you an extra measure of peace and happiness, then I say go for it! :) I will be keeping you and Baby in my prayers.

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  7. Good for you Veronica for setting goals for yourself. For me it it's about paying off debt and loans. We started tracking every penny and realized how much money was going to food (and we DON"T eat out very much at all). I did something crazy and tried to set a budget for our food at half of what we were spending. And you know what happened. I lost 25 lbs, hubby lost 30 and my oldest son lost weight too (the other two are already super skinny). I started looking at food as something needed to nourish us and not as something done for pleasure or mindless. I began telling myself and eating a lot is a waste of money..all you do is poop and pee the money away. Get the nutrition you need and that's all. Really, the budget was amazing for us.

    Good luck!

    Margaret @ Live Like No One Else

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