The Nifty Foodie's Life

Last week, I got some coupons from JCPenney. $10 off $10 or more. (I thought they didn’t do coupons anymore, but I guess I haven’t clothes shopped in a while…) Anyway, I decided that this would be a good opportunity to get some clothes on the cheap. I’m having an itch to get some bright, spring-y clothes, so I was pretty excited to see what they had.

I wasn’t sure what to expect though. This was my first time looking through the misses section in years. I’m talking since the 1990s, y’all.

Here’s a small vent I have about plus size sections in stores. The misses section of a store could have a whole darn floor in a department store, but the plus size section is usually 20ish racks within that floor. Oh, and within that plus size section, about half of it is for a more mature customer. So, the choices were very limited. Also, being a larger size in the plus sizes meant just automatically go to the back of the rack, hoping they had a 3X available. This is why I always hated shopping. It was seriously boring and depressing.

This past weekend, my husband and I went to the mall, and I was really excited to shop. This really never happens, y’all. I get excited to shop for gifts, but for me? HA! After we went to a couple of stores, it was time to face the misses section. My husband grabbed the first XL tee off the shelf, and recommended that I just try it on to even see if it fit. Not only did it fit, but the blue color looked awesome on me. It was a simple V neck fitted tee, which was only $6. Um…seriously? Simple tees in plus sizes are almost twice as much!

So, not only am I dealing with more choices…I’m also getting cheaper clothes? Awesome.

On the way to the fitting room, I also grabbed this bright, spring-y casual blouse. I’m a big fan of aqua/teals, so this one just called to me. This one fit as well. Gosh, I love the colors in this blouse SO much!

I wanted to grab one more top, and my husband saw this fitted polo type of shirt. I just grabbed the XL, and we were off to the register before I could cause more damage to my bank account LOL! We found these three tops in one small section of the misses department. As we were walking out of the store, I was just overwhelmed by all of the clothing choices and possibilities (as well as the prices….you mean a work top doesn’t have to cost $40??!). This is just crazy to me!

Here’s the new tops that I purchased. Don’t they just scream Spring?

Another purchase I made this weekend were these (my before size jeans are below these for a size comparison)…

Lane Bryant was having an additional 70% off clearance sale for one day (Friday). Since my work pants were getting droopy, I figured I’d try my luck. Not only did I find a pair of work pants (for just $12, too!), I also got some guts and purchased my first pair of skinny jeans. Not just any skinny jeans either….teal colored skinny jeans! I felt pretty gutsy with that purchase haha! And can I mention how awesome it is to shop in the 14/16 side of the rack vs. the 24/26? Just AWESOME!

Another great bonus right now is that I’m now fitting my little sister’s (before) clothes. My younger sister, Rachel, has lost 40 lbs. WHILE ATTENDING COLLEGE…yeah…she’s awesome. I asked my sister if she ever gave away any of her clothes, and luckily, her closet at home was still pretty full. So, I told her if there were any clothes she no longer fits in that she doesn’t want, I’d definitely appreciate them. While my sister is 8 years younger than me, she has a ton of professional type clothes, since she’s a music major and has recitals/auditions/etc. I seriously hit the jackpot with what her & Mom brought me this past week.

It seriously doubled my wardrobe, and made me realize I probably need to do another clean-out of clothes that are too big on me.

Oh, and this is what I wore to the mall on Saturday. The cardigan is one of those hand me ups. I love it…a simple grey cardigan with white polka dots! Thanks sis (and Mom, of course, since she probably purchased most of it.)!  Some of the clothes are a smidge too small (and some are really small, since they included some size L tops), but I’m sure once this DietBet is over in March, most of these pieces will be part of my daily wardrobe. So awesome…my wallet totally appreciates it!

I’m so motivated right now! By the way, if you follow my Instagram, I’m sorry that I post a lot of weight loss related pictures. I’m worrying that it may be coming across as braggy. It’s more out of disbelief, I swear. I still can’t believe that this is all happening.

• HAPPY DAY! My DietBet officially ended yesterday, and while the goal was to lose 10 lbs., I’m so happy to say that I lost 13 lbs.! The only thing I changed since the new year was joining a gym (finally) and adding strength training to my workout routine. Crazy how the pounds are just melting away. I’m addicted! I will be doing another DietBet that starts next Monday…at this rate, I could hit “Onederland” by this summer. How AMAZING would that be?!

• I received a package from Influenster a couple of weeks ago that contained dish soap. Specifically, Palmolive Fresh Infusions. You know you’re officially old when you get excited about fancy smelling dish soap, y’all….but seriously, the Lime Basil scent (on the left) smells SO fresh and light. I’m in love…I even wash my hands with it instead of my Bath and Body Works stuff. It also works really well, so now I think I’m spoiled as far as dish soap is concerned.

• I’ve been staring at size charts for a while now, and realized I’m 6 inches (in my waist, that is) away from fitting in my favorite regular sized clothing store (I can’t say favorite by the fit, but I can say favorite by the looks of the clothes and the fact there’s an outlet for them not very far from my house).

•  The last time I was in the New Orleans area, I had to stop here. My favorite king cake place ever, and if you find yourself in New Orleans during king cake season, find one of these cakes. Wait in the line, no matter how long it is (it moves fast). You won’t regret it. I sliced it up in small pieces and froze them immediately so they can be a small splurge for me every now and then. So worth it!

• I can’t believe it’s time for this, again. I started jalapenos, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and a ton of basil for the next growing season. Cannot.wait.

• And a random picture. I refuse to buy new sweaters this season, so I’ve been wearing mine from last winter. It’s a bit ridiculous that these were tight on me last year. They look entirely too loose on me, but it’s a bit of a self esteem booster to see progress every time I look in the mirror.

It’s been three months since I posted about a weight loss milestone. I have to admit, these past 10 lbs. were hard to lose. I was chugging along with my calorie counting, and then Thanksgiving hit. Then, my husband and I went on a cruise (with unlimited fabulous food). And THEN, there was Christmas. While the fudge, cookies & comfort food were worth it, I had to get right back on track! I’m so thrilled to see results again!

The weird thing about losing weight is I always feel like I look like my “before”. I can still stand in front of a mirror, and I still have those fat feelings. I feel like eh, 60 lbs. isn’t THAT much. I still look fat. And really, I’m just about halfway done with my weight loss journey. I know I still have a long way to go.

I know I shouldn’t feel that way, but you are your worst critic, right?

So, on Saturday, I decided to try a regular clothing store for the first time since…um…high school. My measurements were getting close to a size 20 on the chart at Old Navy, so I thought…why not try? I pulled up the jeans, buttoned them, said a little prayer as I pulled the zipper and….THEY FIT! Holy cow! My first regular size jeans in a LONG time!

My progress pictures are a little bit different this time around since I was SO stoked in these pictures (taken in the fitting room at Old Navy), and really felt I should share them. When I made the progress collage this morning, I totally freaked out a little bit. Like I said, I usually still feel like my “before” self, but after looking at these pictures, I truly see progress!

Some NSVs (non-scale victories):

• I’m able to grab my feet when I stretch after a workout. I totally Instagrammed that picture too…my belly always got in the way during my stretches…until now.
• I fit in size 18 pants (womens) and size 20 pants (misses).
• Ok, this is a scale victory. I weigh less than I did on my wedding day!
• My coworkers are constantly pointing out my droopy pants. I don’t mind at all (It actually makes my day!), but I did buy some new work pants and jeans this weekend (I purchase new pants every other size, and only if they’re on clearance…like less than $20/pair).

I still can’t believe how far I’ve come. I mean….my next mini-goal is 75 lbs. I’m 15 lbs. away from that. CRAZY!

Sometimes I look at myself in the mirror, and I have to stare for a second. My body is changing every day, and it blows my mind how much has happened over the past year.

Last year at this time, life was completely different. Walking fast made me breathe heavy, I woke up in the morning with back aches that would last ALL DAY, and well, my clothes in my closet really weren’t fitting well at all. It was embarrassing, but I had no idea how to start. Losing 120 lbs. blew.my.mind.

Now, I’m not the most efficient when it comes to weight loss, but I’m only human. I’ll admit that there were some months ::cough March November December cough:: where I lost way less than usual per month. However, in the end, I averaged 1 lb. each week, and heck, that works for me.

Since we’re well into the new year, I figured I’d share on here my health/fitness goals for 2013.

1. Reach “Onederland” (199 lbs.). I don’t think I’ve seen this weight since middle school. That was 15-16 years ago, y’all. For fun, I actually asked my Mom not to give away my middle school cheerleading uniform so when I reach this weight, I can put that outfit on (probably with another shirt and shorts underneath, of course) and feel pretty darn awesome. Wouldn’t that be the coolest? (or weird…I don’t care..I’m still doing it)
2. Run a 5K with no walking breaks.
3. Attend a spinning class.
4. Do 10 REAL push-ups.
5. Run 250 miles total this year.
6. Finish a 10K.
7. Finish Jillian’s 30 Day Shred program (doing it for 30 days non-stop).

I’m so excited about what this year could bring. I feel SO motivated to reach those goals, and can’t wait to share more of my weight loss journey with y’all.

Also, I seriously cannot say this enough. Thanks so much for your constant support. I’m not sure I could have done this without the support of family, friends and you guys!

I remember taking a knitting class in college, and learning how to make something simple like a scarf or a washcloth. My instructor always showed us the possibilities of knitting, but I honestly never thought I could ever grasp the idea of the more advanced projects (like sweaters and socks). However, one day while browsing Ravelry, I came across a stocking pattern. It had 5 or 6 colors involved, and the novice knitter in me thought…man, there must be a TON of knots all over the back of the stocking. I had no idea how to weave in colors then, so I thought everything was knots, of course.

Then, the crafting bug hit me when I was on the stocking aisle one year. We bought these simple stockings for our mantel, but I just wasn’t happy with it. I wanted something much more personal with more meaning. I figured there had to be an approachable way to make those stockings that I saw on Ravelry, so I did my research. It really didn’t seem that bad, so I bought some red/green/ivory yarn and took the plunge. I started working on these around Halloween, and didn’t finish until early December. I saved the extra yarn specifically for more stockings in the future, whether it be more furbabies or possible human babies. A gal needs to be prepared.

Some knitting notes: For my and my husband’s stocking, I used charts that were included in the pattern. For Millie’s stocking, I googled dog fair isle charts for the paw, bone & fire hydrants. To make the rows fit, I drew my own charts based off of some shapes that I found. I used the duplicate stitch to add our names and ornaments to the trees on my husband’s stocking. I also took notes from Ravelry members, and decreased stitches EVERY round for the toe and heel, instead of every other round.

I’m so happy with how these came out. I had to refer to YouTube quite a few times, but it eventually worked out. I haven’t been able to line them yet, but that will be my project for next year.