Nadine West August 2015

Nadine West is a clothing subscription service. Nadine West is completely free, unless you keep an item. You only pay for what you keep. There is no subscription fee or anything else. Each month you are sent 1 top, and 2 pieces of jewelry. The prices for each item varies, but I have yet to see something more than $25, which makes it pretty affordable for the most part. 

It comes in pretty pink package, just like Ipsy does. 

Inside your outfit is wrapped in pretty pink tissue paper. 

This month I received a pair of purple, green, and silver earrings. They were very cute, but not something I can ever see myself wearing. They kind of reminded me of an easter egg. I sent them back. 

This turquoise necklace was gorgeous, but again, not something I can see myself wearing. So I didnt keep it either. 

This pink top was very cute. Extremely thin but cute. 

I especially loved the back detail. It was way too small in the arms though. I felt like my arms were going to fall off it was so tight. I was extremely sad to have to send it back because it was so nice. 

My second shirt was also very cute. I do feel that a tank top in August was a little strange. I've been packing up all of my summer stuff since were getting into fall, and so I couldnt see spending any money on a tank top.

It did have really cute back detail as well, but it was a tad bit too short for me. 

This month I didnt keep anything. There just wasnt anything that fit right, or was my style. I'm hoping that next month I'll get something that I can actually keep. This was the first month that I had ever received two shirts, and I kind of liked it. It was nice having a second chance to find something that I was really going to like. 

I enjoy getting my Nadine West package every month, though I do wish that I would actually get some items that I like. It feels like I give feedback every month, and yet I still dont receive anything that really fits my style. I am hoping that once winter comes I start getting things that I like. I'm a sucker for a cute sweater. 

I definitely think that Nadine West is worth at least trying, considering that its free if you dont like anything. And you at least have a chance to try something that you normally wouldnt pick out for yourself. I'll continue receiving mine for a couple more months at least. 

Until Next Time,

Sara

Starting My Weight Loss Journey. The Beginning.

Awhile back (before getting pregnant with my first child who is now 4) I got the brilliant idea that I needed to start a fitness program. I needed to exercise and I needed to eat healthy. I was meal prepping and I had planned menus. I was working out and I was feeling great. And then I got pregnant. Which means I stopped working out and eating healthy. (which is not a great idea. I should have stuck with it but I didn't) I weighed 115lbs when I got pregnant. I was 160lbs when I gave birth. Ya, 45lbs gain.

19 weeks pregnant with my 1st, proof that I was looking good (even though I felt huge and thought I was fat back then)

Fast forward 3 years, I got pregnant with my second. I had done nothing to lose my baby weight from my first pregnancy. I weighed 160lbs. I was huge. I ate better but still wasn't that active. With all the complications from my first, and then miscarriage, I was so afraid of pushing myself and losing my little one. So I did nothing. Probably not my best decision but ones made out of fear usually aren't. 

19 Weeks with my 2nd. I was considerably larger (which I know happens with second babies). I felt awful. I was 160lbs when I got pregnant and 175lbs when I gave birth. I left the hospital weighing 160lbs.

I felt good that the baby weight had disappeared when I gave birth but that didn't last long. I was breastfeeding, and starving all the time. So I ate. A lot. I was told that my milk supply would drop if I didn't eat enough, so I ate all the time. Anytime I even thought I was hungry I ate. And we started eating out a lot as it was just easier with a newborn and a 3 year old. 

Fast forward again to present day. I currently fluctuate between 175 and 180. I'm not comfortable in most of my clothes. My youngest is 1 now, and I still wear my maternity clothes on a semi regular basis. I don't own a whole lot that fits me, and I don't want to buy more. I don't like what I see in the mirror. So I decided to do something about it. 

My mom bought me the 21 day fix for my birthday, and I'm doing it. I'm on day 4 of the diet, and day 3 of the workout (I skipped a day due to nasal congestion that made me unable to breathe through my nose at all and general sickness). My husband is doing it with me. I'm determined to not only lose weight, but to start living a healthier lifestyle. We as a family have fallen into some pretty bad habits (too much junk food and eating out). I want more for myself and for my family. So this time I've made a plan, I've found support, and I'm making it happen. I'm fresh out of excuses. 

Its doable, and I know that. I just need to do it. Eventually I don't want to be on a 'diet'. I just want to know how to eat right. Eventually I want to be able to trust myself to make the right choices when it comes to food, but for now I need the structure of a diet plan. This is a starting point. I know that healthy living is a lifelong commitment, and I'm ready to make it. 

I realize that there are going to be days where we eat out, or we have candy and junk food. Someday I will be able to have those things and enjoy them in moderation. But right now I can't have any, because I don't know what moderation is. I over indulge in most things. 

This journey isn't just about losing weight. Its about learning to trust and love myself again. Right now I don't like what I see in the mirror, and I don't trust myself to make healthy choices. But someday I will. And I took that first step. Now its just one day at a time.

Let's make a cake!

Recently I made a wedding cake for a couple friends of ours. It was actually a lot easier than I had thought that it was going to be. It was a pretty simple cake, and I didn't go that over the top in the way I decorated it, but it did turn out pretty nice. It wasn't as perfect as a professional cake would have been, but I was still proud of myself. So here's how I did it.

First I gathered all of my ingredients, baking dishes, and anything I thought I was going to need. I didnt want to have to go searching for something in the middle of making the cake. 

Next I greased all of my pans so that once the batter was mixed it wouldn't sit around for too long. I could just pour the mix into the pan right away and get it baking. 

I put a light dusting of flour on top of the grease to make completely sure that my cakes weren't going to stick to the pan. I didn't want to risk having to remake anything. 

Just use a little flour and gently tilt the pan till the bottom and sides are completely coated with the flour. 

Once everything is coated turn the pan upside down and gently tap to remove any leftover flour. I did this over the sink so that I wouldnt have a huge mess to clean up. 

The next step was to simply make the cakes according to the box directions. Normally I would have made the cake from scratch, but I was a little short on time, and wanted to make sure that I wasnt going to have to rush. 

Once the cake came out of the oven I let it cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes, or until I could turn the pan over without burning my hand. 

I placed the cake(s) on the pans I was going to be icing them on and set them in the fridge. You could just let them sit on the counter until they're completely cool, but I needed them to cool as quickly as I could so I used the fridge. 

Once they were cool I did what is called "dirty icing" which is just a very thin layer of frosting over the entire cake. After this layer was put on, the cakes were returned to the fridge. I left them in the fridge until the icing was completely firm to the touch. 

After the icing was solid I then stacked the cakes on top of each other, and placed a bamboo rod through the center to hold everything in place. The cakes were then iced with a thick layer of icing. I used a spatula to get the icing as smooth as I could. 

Next came the decorating. This part was actually fairly easy. It was just simply a thin line of icing around each layer of the cake. I have a cake decorating thingy, which in my opinion makes life easier. I do tend to use it mainly for making pretty cupcakes. 

The roses I had bought from Micheal's. I put a little dab of icing on the bottom of each rose and pushed them into the cake where I wanted them. 

The whole thing then went back in the fridge until the next day when we took it to the reception. It wasn't the most perfect cake but it was fairly easy, and fun at the same time. I definitely want to try other decorations and what not in the future. I just need more reasons to make cakes. 

Also, next time I make a cake like this I think I'll put a little frosting on the bottom of the bottom layer so that it sticks to the tray. I was surprised by how solid this cake seemed to be. I had been worried that it would slide apart, but it stayed together really well. It also tasted great. 

So that was my project last week. This week we have some glitter jars to make. We'll see how those turn out. Lillian loves glitter, so we may end up with nothing more than a huge mess. 

There's also a bunch of new stories just waiting to be read at Wickedly Twisted Tales, so you should go check them out as well!

Everything is getting done!

So this week has seemed so busy for some reason. I still cant figure out why, since there really wasnt that much to do. I guess its probably because Easter is on Sunday, and it takes forever to get ready for anything. I have made progress on some of my goals, which is exciting! I am actually really proud of all the things that have actually gotten done, or at least started over this past week.

There is a new chapter of Sleeping Beauty that went up at 8 am this morning. You can check it out here http://wickedlytwistedtales.blogspot.com/2013/03/sleeping-beauty_28.html . Please leave me some feedback if you do check it out. I would love to know what people are thinking as they read it. I've been trying to promote the blog as much as possible so that we can get more readers. The other author's works are pretty great as well, so check them out after you read mine. Twitter seems to be the easiest for promoting everything. My twitter is @SaraEcho for anyone who might care to follow me. (I really could use more followers, it would make promoting everything easier.)

I have also been working hard on Lillian's afghan. I am really proud of how far I have gotten so quickly. I am already one skein of yarn in, and started on the second. I think that its going to be beautiful when I finally finish it. I did make it larger than I had planned on, but thats okay. Its going to work great as a blanket on her queen sized bed this summer. I really enjoy crocheting. I cant wait to take more classes and get better at it. It seems to be really calming, which is awesome. Here's the blanket so far.

We have also been working hard on potty training. Lillian doesnt seem to really want to, which makes it hard. She doesnt care if there's poop or pee in her diaper or underwear. It doenst seeem to bother her at all. She does like to sit on the potty, which is a start. She also knows how to tell me when she goes potty. If we could only get her to tell us before she goes I think she would be potty trained in a second. She loves to put her monkey on the potty. The other day he even took a nap there. Which is really cute, and kind of gross at the same time. The monkey finally got washed, and it looks almost brand new. Luckily Lillian didnt mind me cleaning him. Here's where she tucked monkey in for his nap the other day. It was really sweet of her. She takes such great care of her monkey.

Lillian also got to see her grandpa, which was awesome. He had a layover in Denver on his way back home to Idaho, and so we went to see him at the airport. It was nice for him to get to spend a couple of hours with her. I really do wish that Brandon's family lived closer so that we could see them more often. I do talk to MaK every so often, and his mom video calls Lillian almost everyday. I'm grateful for the technology that we have today, because without they would miss out on seeing her growup, which doesnt seem fair. We are going to Idaho for around 20 days or so in June, which will be fun. I'm really excited to go this time, instead of nervous like I was last year. Of course this time I know everyone, know that we all get along and love each other, and Brandon and I are married. Its going to be a great vacation. 

We are still working on the getting pregnant thing, but so far no luck. I am afraid that its not going to happen, and I know thats silly. I mean we were pregnant in November, we can do it again. I'm just afraid that we'll have another miscarriage, and I dont know how I would handle that. It was so hard to lose that baby, and to know that we wont ever get to know that child. I know that God will send us our second when the time is right, I just wish it would happen sooner rather than later. Sooner as in this month. I really need to work on being patient. 

Now all I need to do is get my house clean, start on my novel, and figure out how to find more story competitions to submit my shorts to. I am so excited for the way everything has been going, and I am excited for everything to continue. Its a beautiful life, and I know that I only have God to thank for all my blessings. 

just an update.

I know I said that I was going to post regularly, but that seems to be harder to do than I had originally thought it was going to be. I get so caught up in everything else that I need to get done, and I forget about my blog completely. I am working on things though, and getting better at having time for myself. It goes get easier the more I work on it.

I am taking part in a group blog. It's pretty exciting, and something that I am very proud to be a part of. Each of the writers has chosen a fairy tale, and we are retelling them in our own way. The posts so far are fantastic, and I look forward to reading more of them. I feel honored that I was asked to be part of this, and I really hope that more people will check out our stories. So, here is the link for you to go check it out Twisted Tales. I will warn you that some of the content can be a bit graphic, and not appropriate for all ages, so just keep that in mind when reading. 

I'm also trying to get some ideas in order so that I can start working on a novel of my own. I have several started that I never bothered to finish that I may revisit, but I think I want to start something new. I've been feeling inspired lately, and I want to do this. Its something that I always put off, and I think that its about time I stop doing that. If nothing else, I can at least feel proud of myself for finally finishing a story, which really is my main goal. 

My plate might be a bit full with all the things that I keep planning to get done, but at least then when I get tired of one thing I have something else to move onto. This Friday I'm taking my second crochet class, which I am really excited about. I'm hoping to finish the blanket that I started for Lillian, and then make a second one for Brandon so that he can take it with him when he goes on deployment next. I plan on taking a granny square class next month, which should make the blanket projects easier for me. Right now I'm working only in single and double crochet, which seems to take forever, even though I'm pretty quick. 

Lillian seems to be getting bigger constantly, which is amazing to watch. She is so smart, and learning so quickly. It really makes me proud to be her mother. Right now she is all about her dad, and wants nothing to do with me when he's around. Which is okay because there will be times when he isnt around, and we did just get out of the only wanting mommy phase. Shes talking more and more everyday, and learning new things. Her favorite color right now is blue, and she knows shes two. Her favorite phrases are "Its so cuttte" "Eat my shorts" "Its so good" "its so cute" and "love you too". She can also sing the "e i e i o" part of old mcdonald. Its amazing how great she is. 

Brandon is pretty much the same as always, which means amazing. He's such a good man, and great father. He loves us more than anything, and takes great care of us. We really are blessed that he came into our lives. 

Pretty much everything would be perfect if we could only get pregnant, which hopefully we will soon. Keep your fingers crossed that this month will be the month for us!