It's Really Sad When...

You're so undomestic you don't even have enough to keep a blog about it.  However, I did start another blog about a topic I have a million opinions and thought on - so here's my shameless self-promotion, ditch this blog, go to the other one and read my brilliant and witty (or not-so-brilliant and witty at times) rambles.  :)

I Am Beautiful


Enjoy!

Measurement Update

I'm sorry to be 12 days late with this - but I have also taken a 12 day break from working out so the measurements should still be accurate.  I did The 30 Day Shred 4-5 times a week for 30 days.  That was combined with watching what I eat with Weight Watchers.  Since I'm breast feeding weight loss has been slow (although in the 12 days since I stopped working out I've lost 5 pounds so the muscle is working!) but there has been a definite loss in overall mass.  So here's the verdict:

9/5/09:

Waist - 32
Hips - 41
Thigh - 24

10/17/09

Waist - 30
Hips - 39.75
Thigh - 23.5

Not too bad overall.  I'm going to start another 30 day stretch today or tomorrow and see what happens.  I'll keep you up-to-date.

Halfway There

It's been a little over 15 days since I started the 30 Day Shred.  Level 2 is still kicking my butt and I don't think I'll graduate to level 3 before the 30 days are over.  That's okay though, if level 2 makes me cry I have a feeling level 3 would have me on my knees gasping for Jillian to spare my life. Anyway, I've done the shred 5 days a week and I workout with a friend on Thursdays.  This gives me one day to miss during the week - it's randomly chosen depending on how a certain day went. However, after 15 some odd days I find myself making more and more excuses not to give my best.  So I took my measurements and I have already lost an inch off of my thigh, an inch off of my hips and a 1/2 inch off of my waist.  You would think this would be encouragement enough, but it's not - especially since the scale is not budging (Turns out losing weight while BF is a lie).  So here I am, posting on here so I'll get motivated.  Promising you, my precious few readers, that I will give my best so I can give an honest evaluation at the end of the 30 days.  That, and I'd love to lose another few inches.  And if a few pounds disappear as well, that'd be a great bonus.  The words that are inspiring me this week: I look better than you taste.  So here's to 14 more days of trying to kill myself while jumping around my living room like an idiot.

9-11-01

Today our nation saw evil, the very worst of human nature, and we responded with the best of America.

-President George W. Bush, September 11, 2001

Thank you to all who continue to give and sacrifice for our safety and freedom.  God bless you.

If you need a good laugh...

Come on over to my house when I get the crazy idea to try level 2 of The 30 Day Shred.  I decided to mix it up a little and figured that with the modified movements I'd probably be okay - not the best, but okay.  This was delusional at best.  What Jillian doesn't tell you is that not only will you want to cry like a baby in the middle of level 2, but that it also requires a certain amount of coordination that I am obviously lacking.  I confess, due to my inability to move my feet in one direction and my arms in the other I missed a bit of the workout (although I'm sure the neighbors enjoyed the show).  However, I am still sweating like a pig over a fire pit.  I'll be back to level 1 tomorrow.  In the meantime, I am off to reward myself and my efforts with some chocolate cake.

30 Day Fail

I haven't done The 30 Day Shred in 4 days now due to my baby (I know, I'm terrible, blaming my failure on a baby - but it's true).  My dear little one decided a few nights ago that her one goal in life was getting out of her swaddle and waking up every hour throughout the night.  In return, I decided that my one goal in life was/is to get my baby to be able to sleep without being swaddled.  Today was the first day she slept longer than a 15 minute stretch.  Of course, instead of working out, I spent the time cleaning for our guests who are coming over (have you ever noticed how we don't clean for ourselves but rather for our guests so that they'll think we're neater people than we are?).  So I am going to start my 30 days over again tomorrow.  I'm even going to take those before pictures and my measurements (scary thought) so I can track how much changes in a month.  Looking forward to it.

Baking Bread

One of my favorite things to make is homemade bread.  I love baking in general - cookies, cakes, cupcakes, pastries, breads and any other kind of sweet I can find a recipe for.  Ever since the birth of my daughter I've had to cut several food items out of my diet; dairy happens to be one of them.  So I scoured around for a good bread recipe, made a few changes, and viola - a sandwich bread that my family and I love to eat.

Before I go into the process though allow me to make one recommendation - do not start the process when you know you have a tired baby who will need to go down for her nap within the next 20 minutes.  Bread making should be very relaxing and a tired, crying baby is anything but.

Ingredients:
1 cup hot water (hot out of the tap is fine)
1 T sugar
2 T yeast
2 cups water
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup applesauce
1 T salt
9 cups whole wheat flour

Put the sugar in the bowl and add the hot water and then the yeast.  For those of you who have never baked bread, yeast is alive and needs something to activate it.  Normally that ingredient is milk or sugar.  It is also important to make sure that the water isn't too hot or you will kill the yeast.  If the yeast starts to sink into the water in clumps it's dead and you need to start over.  Okay - back to baking.  Let the water, sugar and yeast sit there for 10 minutes.

While I'm waiting for the 10 minutes to pass I assemble the rest of the ingredients:

After 10 minutes stir the yeast mixture.  You should see little bubbles - this is a sign that the yeast is active.  No bubbles, dead yeast.  Now, if you're using old yeast you may only get a few bubbles but the yeast is still working, your bread just may not rise as much.

Add the applesauce, honey, water and salt and stir. 

Then add in the 9 cups of flour one cup at a time.  Once the mixture gets too hard to stir you'll need to mix with your hands.  When this is the case it's wise to measure out the rest of the flour you need in a separate bowl, otherwise your flour container will end up covered in dough - I speak from experience.

Sorry - no picture.  Lil' Miss started to cry and I added the flour as fast as I could.

Knead the dough for 4-5 minutes.  Most people recommend taking the dough out of the bowl and placing it onto a lightly floured surface.  However, it's just as effective, and definitely easier, to just knead the dough in the bowl.  Also, you may or may not use all the four in the bowl - just work on kneading it in.  Once you're done kneading the dough, place it in a slightly oiled bowl (flip the dough over once), cover with a damp cloth and place in a warm area for an hour. 

The dough should double in size: 

After an hour, punch the dough down, divide into to pieces and place in loaf pans.  Most people, at this point, will tell you to first shape the dough like a loaf and place it into pans that have been sprayed with a non-stick cooking spray.  I have yet to master this, so I just plop the dough into the oiled pans and make it fit. 

Then cover it with a damp cloth and place in a warm spot for another hour.  The dough will double in size again. 

Place the pans in the oven and bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.  Dump out of pans and allow to cool.

 

Now, if you're wondering why the one on the left is smaller allow me to share.  To put it in layman's terms, I am incapable of separating the dough into two equal pieces so one is always smaller than the other.  I suppose I could take the time to master the skill of making them equal sizes, but it tastes just as good no matter it's size so I'm not too fussed about it.

And there you have it - bread that is quick and simple.  Oh, and while it's still warm, slice yourself a piece and add some butter to it - oh so good!