Day 8 and a little "butt" of Florida

           Buenos Dias


Just finished day 8 of my workout! 

I am feeling great! Mostly, it's just because I know I'm trying. All my meals are basically cut in half. I thought that would be the hardest part but I just did it somehow. All it took was once then I never even doubted that I couldn't eat right again. I haven't eaten chocolate in I don't know how long. Maybe 8 days?? haha!! But, I am going to make 'Fat Free Chocolate Jello Pudding' soon for us to have after dinner. I totally recommend eating like a fat free jello right after a workout with a glass of water. It makes me feel so refreshed and it's a fun, fairly healthy snack (Noelle sits on my lap and enjoys it, too!) 

I weighed myself today and there's definitely a difference! The inches are still similar but have went down just a bit. I'll post the results at the end of this week because I will be starting the 2nd  level of the workout on Monday. There are 3 levels all together. I am going to do each level for two weeks. I remember when I did level 2 a long time ago and it left me hurting!! I'm excited!

Another snack we love to get our crunch on with

Just to say, I MISS FLORIDA! I miss our friends and family soooo much! I wish Noelle could be around them more! I miss the heat, the humidity (well maybe not really), the air, the lakes, the beaches, the malls, the roads!! Agh! Home sick!

Hangin' at the lake, Florida Style

My big brother <3

Guilt Free Snacking. A recipe.

Salsa, Salsa, Olé!

My name is Kara Bernier and I am a snacker. 

Not like Doritos and Ice cream, but like Salt and Chocolate! If I don't have anything fairly healthy to snack on, I just won't, ok I usually won't. Which kinda stinks! So, I looked online for "Guilt Free Snacks." I want to snack and snack and have a full belly but not get the fat, carbohydrates, etc. I found one thing that I knew I would love; Chips & SALSA! It is all fresh ingredients that can basically only benefit you. The chips I wanted to get were Organic Blue Corn Chips, which is the probably one of the healthiest choice of Tortilla Chips, but honestly, I wasn't going to pay almost $4 for a bag when I knew that when I got home, Maxx and I would kill the bag sooner than later on. Therefor, I just got regular store brand Tortilla Chips.

On to the "recipe" if you will..

Ingrediants:

2-3 Tomatoes 

2 Cloves of Garlic

1/4-1/2 Onion

1 Green Bell Pepper

5 sprigs of Cilantro

Jalapeno (to your liking)

Few squeezes of Lemon or Lime

If you have a food processor or blender, only chop the ingredients in chunks then pulsate. It can be chunky or more pureed. If your like me and used your coffee grinder (don't judge me) then cut into a little smaller pieces. If you don't have either, that's ok too, just finely chop everything and smash with a Pestle or fork. Also, I only started with 1 tomato but used more for more of a red look and to add a better flavor to the salsa.

Cilantro

 

 

 

Onions

peppers

Garlic

Ready to eattt

Trust me, this tasted awesomeeee and oh-so-fresh! Even better the second day! I told Maxx that I was only going to make it and save thru the week to snack on. Well... we ate 98% of it that night. I had all the ingredients left over to make more except the tomatoes so everything goes a long way and it's all really cheap. I know that this is totally all basic but it's just so enjoyable. I basically just took everything I thought would go in salsa and did it. haha. Next time, though, I think I might use some tomato paste or something to thicken up some sauce.

Added bonus...

This is how I cut onions. Every.single.time. My eyes are soooo sensitive to everything and when I cut onions, they just make me sob. And, once you mince them, oh boy! It's terrible. I had to resort to using goggles to make it a little more manageable

Happy Snacking!

I want these!

Love, Love, Love...

ModCloth

I do believe I'll be making one of these very soon

 

Ruche

 

 Never let your vintage dreams die.

I get compliments on a pair of gold hoop earrings I have all the time, and guess what, they're from my grandma! 

 

By the way: Have I mentioned that I have been DYING to actually start sewing/making my own clothing and jewelery? I wish I were in town with my Nana so she could teach me versus me trying to teach myself through YouTube or something. I think I should start by actually buying a sewing machine. I can't keep using just a needle and thread like I did to make my curtains.

Another random side note: I need cowboy boots. Soon.

Upcoming Projects

                                               Bonjour!  

Mommy's little helper

There's been so much I've been wanting to do around the house since we've moved in March. I almost don't want to do much because I have no idea when we'll be moving again. Maxx has been trying to talk to a Sergent about getting us PCS'd to FL. It's a maybe/maybe not situation right now. It all depends if there's a spot for him there or not. If so, we'll only be 2 hours (or less) from home. That would be sa-weettt! So basically, I don't want to do too much and pick up and move in a month. 

Here's a few current ideas and short term goals floating around that I find myself writing on post-its, dry/erase boards, random sheets of loose leaf paper, and my notebooks to not forget... It's a nasty little habit of mine. I'll be posting a sort of Bucket List here pretty soon.

• Make a "built in" style desk (we actually just built one but want a different one already, haha) 
• Make a "Family wall/section" with all our family photos
• Make a "Military wall" for all Maxx's awards/certificates
• Make a Shadow Box for the Military Wall.
• Make my Herb Garden
• Print pictures for (and finish!) Noelle's baby book/scrapbook 
• Make a few new headbands
• Make some necklaces, Kara Style
• Finish reading the New Testament 

 I hope everyone keep these small (sometimes silly) goals in touch everyday. I do think that sometimes it can get me frustrated when I try and do so many things at once and I feel too over-whelmed. Keep it for fun! I say it's time to bust out those hot glue guns. Maybe add stud it with some rhinestones while your at it (hmm.. maybe I'll do that today!) Oh, I also need to make my mama a Birthday Card. 

Question: When does it become cheap rather than crafty to make your own cards? I would so rather hand make a card than buy one. It's so much fun and I think it shows you took time out to do something for them. Maybe it's just me, though.

Real quick: I just finished workout 5! My first full week of working out!! Yayyy! I might even workout once this weekend, I am really afraid of falling off the wagon if I take the whole weekend off. I did post a "Cheat" snack that looks soooo yummy on my Twitter

Song love of the day: Broken Social Scene... 7/4 Shoreline 

Funny looking jumping jacks, yo

                                Konichiwa!       

                             
Day 3, hollla! 

I reallllly did not want to do my workout today but I DID! I have been so lazy and not wanting to actually be productive till at least 11 or so. Usually, I am doing dishes and dusting by 8am. I sucked up my laziness and worked it outtt! 

Yesterday, I got the idea all of a sudden to record myself working out. I swear I'm not crazy, but I just wanted to see how I was performing. WELL... to my (not so much) surprise... I was totally not doing half the moves right. Even my jumping jacks looked a little funny. I'm so glad I did that because today, I did each exercise as correct as I could, and YES that incluses my pushups (yeah, I still do the girly ones.) I can admit though, that my knees and ankles are hurting now. That's what happened last time I did this DVD. Once I get to "Workout 2" next week, I know it's going to hurt worse. I (kind of) took measurments tonight to see if there was any changes and there wasn't. It wasn't a surprise but I just wanted check and see. 

Also, I posted a picture of Ellie and I when we went camping a few weekends ago. I'll probably post some scenic pics throughout random blogs. It was incredibly beautiful. God's gifts are so breathtaking.

Side note: What do I want to do for a living. I still don't know. I love being a mama but I need something else after her bedtime. Losing time with her through the day is not an option (until absolutely necessary.) That's job #1. Pondering...

Out of breath

                          Hey, Heyyyy 
 

Today was my 2nd day working out. Well, actually I started a little last week but I didn't do it straight. So, I did my 20 minute workout during nap time. I barely had enough time for a glass of water before Ellie woke up. Wheew! She does notttt like me working out. She all of a sudden gets clingy and I end up jogging with her in my arms. haha. 

Anyway, I ate good yesterday and so far today so I am keeping my hopes up. I've done this before and I'll do it again! 

Hot body, here I come!

Nap Blogging

I've seen a few other bloggers have a version of this, but it's so true! This is me trying to blog through nap time.

Running cleanup (literally)

20 minute workout DVD

Guzzle an ice water

Take "before" shots of myself for my workout plan to blog about

Delete the "before" shots before anyone sees my terrible stretch marks, etc..

Upload the rest of the pictures I've been meaning to post every time I'm online

Attempt to read other blogs as I wait to the photos to upload to FB

Comment on a hilarious bog and say screw capitalization and punctuation, there's no time for that

Wait, Did I hear Noelle cry?

No that wasn't her, I have a few minutes to spare.

Begin to write captions for the recently uploaded photos..

Erase the word "breakfast" 5 times because I'm typing entirely too fast

Crap. 

She's up.

Typing while holding her as she flails for the mouse.

Until tomorrow :)

Summer Weight Loss Plan

                                      SO....

Here I am. Posting about weight loss for the summer time. How silly am I?! A million people post about it a day... 

BUT- I am doing this for me. I'm going to post this and track myself once a week throughout the summer (typical, typical, I know.) I am mainly doing this because I feel like if I post if on line in a "permanent" place, I will actually do it. I saw on Andrea's Choice that she suggests measuring in inches lost vs tracking pounds. I plan to track both. I am NOT going to do some crazy dieting program. I have a workout DVD of Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred. It's just a 20 minute workout and I'll be doing it 5 days a week (weekends off.) I maxed out at 200 lbs when my daughter was born in March 2010, and I used this DVD to get the baby weight off. Very effective! I didn't even use this 100% back then, so I can imagine the results when I do. 

EATING STYLE: I am not going to drink as much soda (I don't really drink a lot now, anyway.) I am going to cut back on my carbs. I can't totally stray from my love of pasta, but I can make some progress, haha. I really don't cook "bad" things as it is but I am not going to prepare any "special" meals for dinner. I'll just eat smaller portions.

CALCULATIONS: Everyone's body is different, embrace that! I used to have a hard time with that concept but I am so much more comfortable now that I am ACTUALLY ok with it. At my height, 5'5, with a medium frame, I should be somewhere between 127-141. I found a pretty cool formula on a web site and calculated my Body Fat Percentage, HERE. I have no clue what to set a goal for with inches so I'll just track how many I lose. With my Body Fat Percentage, I am right at the max. I plan to lose some in that area.

Now on to the specifics...

Current Weight: 145.2

Goal Weight: 135

Current:

Bust Inches: 36.5

Waist Inches: 34.5

Hip Inches: 35.5

Percent of Body Fat: 30.2%

Goal BF: 25%(+-)

Wish me LUCK!

I was planning on posting a "before" picture of myself, but when I took the picture, I couldn't bring myself to actually post it. It just looked too bad (seriously.) Hopefully I'll be posting the "after" shot soon enough. :)

Summer Lovin'

                                      Hola! 

Well, I have really been enjoying the summer so far! We've hit the water park, museum, a festival, went to an awesome flea market a few hours away and popped into the fair this past weekend. We have a lot more planned as well. I got a great idea from Organize and Decorate Everything. She printed photos offline of things her family wanted to do through the summer. She strung them up in her living room and replaced the printed photos with an actual snapshot of her family doing whichever adventure they accomplished. Super cool right? Well I haven't really done that (yet) but it just made me dream of everything that summer is to me. 

 

When we took our mini road trip to check out a Flea Market in Bowling Green, KY.. the drive was gorgeous! Not to mention, we came across the "400 Mile Yard Sale!" We've watched that on HGTV before and we love it! So, needless to say, it was amazing to check out. On the way there, Maxx and I couldn't help but drift into dreamland a bit. We talked about how cool it would be to be driving a vintage convertible out in the country like we were. He joked about how I'd be in a sundress with one of those huge hats and sunglasses. I think he would look so handsome as the sun bounced off his freckles (which are my fave btw.) 

Summer is so fun to talk about! Even if we never do anything like what is trapped in our minds, it's still fun to think about. If everything were rainbows and butterflies, my version of summer would look a little like this;

Me-in a black vintage one piece bikini laying poolside with my heels, hat, and shades on (to prevent under eye wrinkles, of course.) Noelle (and our future minis) playing in the sprinklers, laughing their beautiful laughs. Maxx would be doing some laps in the pool and then fire up the grill. The sun would be so bright but the air wouldn't be so hot. Just warm, with a light breeze. The grass would be green. Not just green, but summer green. Then, I would go get my already prepared homemade lemonade (courtesy of my Aunt B) and cookies to bring to my amazing family and friends. 

We'd have a lovely patio arrangement with plenty of seating for our guests. Nothing expensive, just charming. I'd have a handmade centerpiece and also some bright blue and white hydrangeas, of course. We would have our record player out and have a little Sinatra playing in the background. 

Lots of trees, plenty of love, and a lotta summer.

Just a dream for now.

I.AM.

So, I have missed a few weeks of reading my usual blogs. Sometimes I won't post my own blogs too often but always stay up-to-date on reading my favs. So, I was catching up on Little Miss Momma  and found a guest post from The Wiegands.  

WOW. 

That's all I could feel inside. Just a huge 'wow' feeling swimming around. I feel instantly attached to Casey. What struck me at first was her love for her littles. I cannot express my love for my little lovely enough in one sentence and she spread love into the words on her blog like I have never seen before. It was honest, deep, and so, SO incredible. It was like she took everything I can't get out and she smeared it across the screen in beautiful scriptures. Then, as if how I was already feeling wasn't enough, I came across her unphasable love for Chirst. I AM SO HAPPY. This is THE blog I've been looking for. Her. She is my inspiration.

Oh, have I mentioned that I had only read 2 posts from her at this point? Yeaaa, she's that good. 

To me, Christ is something that isn't negotiable. Jesus is stronger than us all and can lift our lives up when it seems we just can't anymore. He is my ALL and Casey, again, took it from deep in my heart, and it was like I was reading my thoughts. I scrolled down to the bottom of her page and saw a media player. I've been though so many blogs and have never seen this before. I started hearing the first song Priscilla Ahn's, Dream. Call it cheesy if you'd prefer but I actually started to cry. I just looked up and thanked God. 

I was thanking him for reasons even besides her blog, but for giving me emotion and allowing people to connect in such incredible ways. He is amazing. I apologize for possibly being repetitive but I am in still in shock. I haven't had such a passionate feeling in so long. 

Credit

I looked out my window as I was teary eyed, and realized that there is a tree in front of it. I mean, I've noticed the tree before as I've pondered out of the window as I write or browse other things, but I've never really noticed it. I could see the grey sky between the bright green leaves and I could just feel God's blessings. Casey talked about having open hands in her guest post on LMM. I do belive I will be framing one of the quotes very soon. As in, seriously. I have no idea where it was from but it was so powerful and it is exactly who I want to become. 

I love women like Casey and Ashley. They're honest and they are so unselfish. In a way, when I first came across LMM I didn't even want to share my new found obession with anyone! I didn't want anyone knowing my new secret weapon to getting mama tips, etc. But then, I saw how she links to who she finds inspiration from and she has guest posts from other amazing people. That showed me that there was no way I could keep her a secret. I wanted people to know about her, and the other great things/people I've found. I have learned so much from her and throughly enjoy the person she seems to be.

I look forward to seeing what these amazing women can continue teaching me. I am excited to see how I am able to change my life through blogs, and of course through our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

All I can really say is that I.am.happy.

-Mama Bee