little did i know

that in the 12 days since i posted how excited i was about my fitness challenge, i would be sugar, caffeine and wine free (well alcohol free really, but wine is the only one i miss).  i sort of assumed that this challenge would be like ones i have done in the past.  eat healthy (for the most part), work out a lot, etc.  apparently this one is completely different!

we started out with a very specific meal plan and drinking 10+ cups of water a day.  i'm not a huge water drinker to begin with, but in order to eat, we had to drink water before.  that got my water intake up because i do love to eat.  i've had to juggle things around a bit with my eating since i'm fairly sporadic at work, but i think i've finally gotten the hang of it.  i am starting to feel better too.  the first week was me trying to find the right calorie intake, i wasn't eating nearly enough and that was making me cranky, exhausted and starving.  

i've found some new foods that i like eating (edamame - had never had before!) and ezekiel bread (find in the frozen section at certain grocery stores...it is free of all preservatives and anything artificial and is actually quite good!)  i've also found that what i really crave isn't what you'd think.  sure, i'd give anything for a starbucks salted caramel mocha right now, but what i've really been dreaming about is a bowl of oatmeal or cereal and milk!  

we are in the middle of the second week of our detox and then we move on to other eating goals, i am looking forward to some different meal options and seeing how this challenge progresses.  

style file

i remember growing up i was dressed in corduroy pants for school, while most everyone else wore jeans.  they were pretty corduroy pants, don't get me wrong, in fun colors with cute little hearts and butterflies on the pockets, but i always felt like the odd girl out.  once i started wearing jeans, i took a long, long break from corduroys.  i'm talking a 20 year break, and even then i didn't wear them much.  but seeing them is all sorts of beautiful dark, rich colors for autumn has made me fall for them again.  and since it is practically fall here, which means it is the the 70-80's, i've started breaking some out!  i'm excited to see how they'll fit into my fall and winter wardrobe this year.

my kids think i am nutty, for many reasons i'm sure, but definitely in that i take a ton of pictures of my outfits.  every now and then they want to get a pic of their outfits too.  

all pieces from j.crew, shoes were two seasons ago.

thursday instagram round-up

fun at the county fair

so happy!

being silly at lowe's

first go-kart ride!

first sooner home game of the season.  boomer sooner!

relaxing sunday on the lake.

blowing bubbles and sharing nicely :)

style file: feeling fallish

i'm so ready to break out my fall clothes.  i've worn a few pieces even though it is getting close to 90 in the afternoon.  this particular sweater is probably better for late fall as it is thick and soft, but the elbow patches are too cute, i can't help but wear it!

jeans: sevens; cardi: gap; shoes: tory burch; tee: jcrew

fitness kick-off!

hooray.  this year's personal fitness challenge starts today!  

it comes at the end of a long summer.  i tried to eat well, or at least better than the previous summer, but the good intentions i had did not always mean it actually happened.  

this was the challenge that kicked me into gear last fall and i'm ready to go at it again!  

i'm putting my goals out there in an effort to stick with them:
* lose 2% body fat
* lose 5 pounds 
* stick to the 100 days of real food plan as closely as possible...knowing that a few things will have to go by the wayside (bread and mini york peppermint patties)
* give myself ONE (and only ONE) treat per week...this can be a meal, a dessert or a starbucks...no treat days or in my case, treat long weekends...

our challenge lasts 7 weeks and we get weighed every other week and we track our food daily.  food tracking is really beneficial and and can completely change how you eat as long as you honestly track your food.  i love myfitness pal and i have been on it (with a few short breaks here and there) from when i did this challenge last september.  

here's to hopefully changing my eating habits for the better and getting rid of the junk.

thursday instagram round-up

summer's last hurrah.  it's still hot out here though, so we are hanging on strong to our time at the pool & the lake.

i arrived home from 4 days learning new software in dallas last week to pick up my sweet boys from school...miles was in pj shorts.  apparently it was a long week for daddy.  ;)

my afternoon nap companion.

last pool time of the summer!

salted oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from mom advice. 

evening boat ride.

don't worry, this was just a posed pic...we need a bigger jet ski to attempt this.  but mollie did go out with miles and me earlier and she was quite the fan.

she insists upon wearing a backpack when she helps drop her brothers off at school.  

style file: getting to the heart of it

top: modcloth; tank + leggings: jcrew; shoes: toms ballet flats; necklace: stella & dot