Sacrifice

Loved her book. And her blog. Especially this post this week.

Bits and Pieces

I want this office. I suppose for me it would be more of a craft room than an office, being as I have no source of income at the present time. (working on that) 

Love this.

I want to do this challenge. Maybe not this month. I'm thinking it would be perfect to do in preparation for a baby though. Pregnant friends, take note. (and I'm filing away for the future. like at least a year from now.)

I want cute things in my purse. Scratch that. I want a cute purse with cute things in it. 

Good to know.

Need to address this. And this.

Things Loved in April

1. BABYBJÖRN Toilet Trainer.

Is it weird to love a toilet seat? Undoubtedly. But I'm really happy with this purchase. Asher began toilet training last month, and this seat is fantastic for him. It sits right on top of the regular toilet seat. I didn't want to get a separate miniature potty chair that Asher would get used to, and then be afraid of - or just not want to use - the regular potty. Even though it means bringing him upstairs to our one and only bathroom EVERY.SINGLE.TIME. he says poop, pee, or potty. 

2. Benefit Erase Paste.

This concealer is so great. It's thick and tacky and covers up so well. I haven't purchased any yet, since I'm still working off a sample I got at Sephora.

3. Google Reader.

It's amazing. If you're crazy like me and read a billion blogs, this site organizes them so that you see the newest posts - of all subscriptions - first. I could view it differently if I wanted. For example, I could click on A Cup of Jo and see only that blog's posts. But the screenshot above is my default view. I can easily skip over posts I don't want to read. Or I can star specific posts to read later. I highly recommend this if you read more than 2 blogs.

4. Hamilton Beach Half Pint Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker.

I bought this on clearance at JCPenney last fall and finally broke it out last month when we had a stretch of warm weather. Most ice cream makers make a big container of ice cream, but this one makes one bowl at a time (it came with two bowls). It works perfectly for our little family. And the recipes are a hit with Asher.

5. Mindy.

No longer my arch enemy, Mindy has made my second ever "Things Loved" post. Funny, I can specify, to the day, when our relationship made a u-turn. April 7, 1996, according to the poor quality photo above, when we danced in the Easter program at church. Min and I had our annual Ikea visit last month, and man did I need it. She asked me questions that I need to be asked, and she actually listened to my responses. We agreed that having the other live out here on the East Coast provides some comfort and makes it a little easier. I'm so thankful that someone who knew me in my worst middle school years and ended up being in my wedding, and I in hers, lives so close to me when my family is so far. But 4-to-8-hours-depending-on-traffic is still too far. Wish we lived even closer.

New Week, Please

The last seven days have been an interesting first week (of the 3rd round) of Weight Watchers and seventh week (of the 2nd round) of Couch to 5k. Each of us were sick at various times, though I'm not 100% I can pinpoint where it began. I suspect Asher, who was sick first (and for the 1st time in his life with the flu), got it from one of the other children at MOPS last week. Thankfully, his bout lasted less than 24 hours. Here he his with his barf pail.

Isn't he sweet? He was happy because he was watching the Veggie Tales Jonah movie. Pronounced "doe-bye", Jonah makes everything better.

Then Michael got sick. Like bad. Was in bed all day on Friday. Then I got sick after eating my curry dish, which you may remember, for dinner. I'm not convinced that's what caused it. I mean, I've made this dish before and had no problem. But let's just say I won't be making curry for a while.

The bright side of all of this - for me anyway - is that I lost a few pounds in the process. I've since gained the sickness weight-loss back, unfortunately. I'm hoping I'm still down a couple pounds from last week though. We'll see in the morning.

Week 7 of the Couch to 5k program has me running 25 minutes straight. Well, I actually made it today. I was feeling fantastic, and confused as to why I didn't have a more difficult time with it. I had a sneaking suspicion that the treadmill was at a decline. Michael confirmed it. Makes me nervous for my next run, now that the machine has been adjusted.

Can't I just go back to eating whatever I want and not running? Who's dumb idea was it to do start eating and exercise plan anyway?

The Last Supper

Ours was last night. At Olive Garden. And it was D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S. Like, so so so good. 

And how was this our last supper? Well, we've starting Weight Watchers today. (again.) (for the 3rd time.) So I'm considering it our last overindulgent supper. It's interesting, I have gone through this process twice since Asher was born, and both times have lost a good amount of weight. And I think, at the time, that I'm on such a good trajectory and can quit the official program to just do it on my own. Well, it hasn't worked out that way. I don't know what I'm going to do at the end of the 4 months (there was a special - buy 3 months online, get the 4th free). But I'm going to remain dedicated through the time I'm committed.

Since we're talking about food here, let me share some recent dishes I've prepared.

I enjoy cooking. I have for a long time. What I don't enjoy is the dishes that need to be washed after. Specifically, the pots and pans that I don't put in the dishwasher because they take up too much room and maybe I'm not supposed to? But that's not what this post is about. You've read enough about my abhorrence dislike of cleaning.

Here's some fantastic homemade whole wheat sandwich bread. I'd been using a different recipe for a while, but this is far superior in taste and texture.

And here is the most amazing BBQ Chicken Pizza. I used Bob's Red Mill gluten-free pizza crust, which is scrumptious, as well as Bulls Eye brand barbecue sauce. Original flavor I think. So good. I also added bacon, though the recipe didn't call for it.

And for tonight's meal, I made a Chicken Vegetable Curry in the crockpot, served with brown rice. Also tried homemade naan for the first time. It was VERY good. Though this meal maybe wasn't the best choice for our first Weight Watchers dinner since coconut milk is about a thousand points.

(If you were wondering, I ordered the Braised Beef and Tortelloni at OG. It was divine.)

Easter Fun

Asher and his basket

From my basket :)

After a wonderful meal at the Wilsons, the kids had an Easter egg hunt.

The best photo taken during an attempt at a nice family picture

Mail Time

I received lots of fun things in the mail last week.

First, my April Birchbox.

I haven't tried any of the products yet, but I'm most excited for the nail polish and face oil.

The same day, I received a package from my sister, including a soft North Face zip up, pretty orange J. Crew dress, and bright orange-red lipstick (all hand-me-downs). So fun! I love getting things from her.

Then on Friday, this baby came in the mail:

I totally copied these people and made sure I got the same deal. There are 550+ photos from 2011 packed into this puppy! I am going to round up my 2010 pictures as well and make another one when My Publisher has another 70% off sale.

I love getting mail. And I especially love getting packages in the mail. If anyone is in the mood to send a package (of goodies) somewhere, feel free to send it my way.