Birthday and Baking

Happy Birthday to Isaac! I can't believe he turns 2 today. Though he is the baby of the family, he definitely is NOT a baby anymore!

Here is a couple of weeks old:



Here is a recent pic:


I love that newborn snuggle stage, but honestly, I have to say, that every age has its fun points. What a joy to see his soulful eyes light up in laughter, or when he discovers something new. I love to watch him study things over and watch how he is so dexterous! He has excellent fine motor skills.

This morning Jerusha and I made Isaac's birthday cake. Then I wrapped his gift and we went about our day.

Esther was mixing up some bread dough and I realized how cozy and nice it was to have us girls in the kitchen, working together. Elizabeth was busy washing breakfast dishes, too.

Speaking of Esther, she took on the task of making a gingerbread house... from scratch. I offered to get her one of those kits from Target, but she just looked at me scornfully and said, "I'll do it from scratch, thank you." Look out Martha Stewart!

Here is the end product, which came out pretty well at first. She finished yesterday before church, but when we got back we saw the roof had collapsed and knocked down part of a wall. She and Dale tried to fix it, but it didn't hold very well. This morning more of the wall was down. I don't know what happened, but my guess is that more frosting was needed to glue it all together. Overall though, it was an excellent first attempt!



Since last January I have been on a journey to lose some weight, but more than that to get into a habit of healthier living. I have recently bought a Heart Rate Monitor as a reward to myself for losing over 30lbs. It will help me more accurately gauge how many calories I am burning during a workout, and while going about my usual routines. That way, I can be sure not to overestimate how many calories I need to consume.

I have learned that no matter what approach you take to losing weight, it boils down to the math. You can mess around with carbs all you want. You can go on specialty diets (which I do NOT recommend). But it is very simple... you have to burn more calories than you take in. I also have learned it is a whole lot easier to put on weight than to take it off. Most importantly I learned NOT to diet, but to change my lifestyle so that it is healthier.

One of the side effects to this healthier lifestyle is that the clothes in my closet have become way too big for the most part. Earlier this fall I went through and got rid of two large garbage bags of clothes that no longer fit. Over the summer I had to replace a couple of jean skirts. Now my favorite black and khaki skirts no longer even came close to fitting, so I had to replace those in a size I haven't worn since I had the twins. That's 13 years! I also got a new top and stylish scarf with a gift certificate my mother in law gave me for Christmas. Talk about good timing! anyway, I hate to toot my own horn, but here is the "new" me:



I still have a little ways to go, but I'm so excited to be feeling energetic and slimmer! I have no plans to revert away from all I am learning. It is a process, but at least things are going in the right direction.

Oh, I got my new skirts from New Creation Apparel. I recommend them for affordable, modest, stylish clothing. Their sizing charts are right on. When they say the waist is say, 32, then it really is a 32" waist. I measured myself at home to make sure I got the right size, and it was exactly as they advertised. Also, I ordered the skirts on Monday afternoon, and it got here Wednesday afternoon... and that during the busy holiday season. So, two thumbs up for New Creation Apparel!

Have a great day everyone!