by Just_Aimee on March 9, 2010
I would say weight loss has been a battle for me…but that would presuppose I had entered the fight. I give losing weight lip service as I snack on Girl Scout cookies and sit on my couch and make excuses for not exercising and eating–after all the best stress relief=Chubby Hubby ice cream (right?!)…
With the weather now nice–there is truly no excused to not go running. (Well, except that my favorite shoes are giving me blisters 
but to remedy that I used DH’s coke rewards points to order a new pair of Nike’s–so as soon as they arrive there goes even that excuse)
I did go out today…with my blister-causing shoes (after DH said that it would be a silly thing to do!) But I had read somewhere that applying gobs of petroleum jelly would keep the shoe from rubbing and therefor blisters would not form–ummm…did not work.
My planned three miles was cut to one, limpy mile….but as I was walking (could not run because of the blister)…I started thinking about all the websites I have visited, and Biggest Loser episodes I have watched, and magazines and books I have read about weight loss and running. Let me tell you, I am definitely filled with book knowledge. I know all the ’secrets’ about what is ’sure to work’ and I have made some half-hearted attempts at many different things…As I was walking, though, it occurred to me that it really boils down to the 3 R’s!
R #1: RECORD! almost every diet plan or life-eating plan (as most call themselves now) talks about how important it is to journal everything you eat. I know it would make a difference but I am so stubborn about doing it because I just don’t want to write down those 3 thin mint cookies–I think knowing what I eat and when and why would be the number one key to weight loss success. I know I do a lot of mindless munching…but couldn’t tell you just how many calories I ‘waste’ a day other than the number is high.
R #2: RUN! which is really code for exercise. I love the running the best. But I have come to the conclusion that what really matters is the moving. I don’t need to power-lift and be so scheduled that it is not fun–but I do need to move everyday! I need to make an hour for myself to get out there and do something. Time (especially as a homeschooling, working mom) is so limited BUT that hour a day–also life-changing. It is ‘me-time’–time to pray, think, just be. “Losing” that hour, gains so many rewards.
R #3: RELATIONSHIP! This is a personal one for me. All the reading says not to diet–that diets are restrictive and no one can stick to them–they give an out to people like me. I know I have an unhealthy relationship with food. I get so busy, I don’t eat, and then I binge! That cycle happens all throughout the day. I also have a major sweet tooth. I am a vegetarian who has turned largely into a junkatarian (I don’t eat meat but not much healthy, either.) For weigh loss to occur, I need to redefine my relationship with food AND that has to mean sticking to a schedule and being really strict with what I choose to consume. Food has to lose its “crutch” affect with me. For the time-being, I need to think of food as energy and not a source of enjoyment or stress-relief.
That is not saying that I will never not eat the things I love…for example, a dear friend and I go out weekly for Starbucks–and I do choose healthy off the menu–that will continue…but the other 4-5 trips a week just because don’t need to happen….
Bottom-line: weight-loss is not easy. And it is not just going to happen because I read a thousand articles. It comes down to a choice I need to make within myself. And the discipline to not let the excuses that run through my head win out.
by Just_Aimee on March 9, 2010
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by Just_Aimee on March 2, 2010
Math Mammoth is AWESOME! It is hands-down my most loved product of the TOS-Crew year. WHY? I forgot how to do a lot of math–I have a calculator and very little use for math in my daily world….BUT with a 7th grade daughter who needs to learn concepts such as fractions (which embarrassingly I admit I don’t totally remember), I was stuck in how to teach it to her. 
Concepts (such as fractions) would come up in the curriculum we were using but the explanation on how to do it was not very clear. I was unsure of what to do. I have tried so many math curriculum’s but none were very helpful. I was unsure of what to expect with Math Mammoth. Was it going to be just another math curriculum with a lot of problems and practices and vague instructions?
One great thing about Math Mammoth is that you can purchase a full curriculum for a specific grade level, a worktext based on a specific topic (fractions, divisions, clocks, etc), or worksheets that contain problems only.
Silly Girl and I are working our way through the worktext on fractions! FINALLY a curriculum that provides a complete, clear, and visual explanation of the concepts with lots of practice problems for review.
Today we worked on converting mixed fractions. The page starts with visual representations to explain the concept and gradually reduces the visuals with the last section containing the problems (without the visuals as a guide). This is a great curriculum!
It is also extremely affordable. The fraction book we are using costs $4.50. The curriculum is in eBook format. I chose to have it printed at Staples so that increased our cost slightly. There is also an option to order some of the materials in printed format, as well as options to buy more than one topic and or curriculum choices in package format. Basically, there are options to fit all budgets.
I highly recommend Math Mammoth and it will be the curriculum Silly Girl and I use to master math concepts. LOVE IT!
Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of this curriculum in order to write this review. No other compensation was given. This review represents my honest feedback of this product.
by Just_Aimee on March 1, 2010
OK…so I think that February didn’t really exist 
It certainly flew by very quickly….March will be another quick month. Looked at the calendar yesterday and I only work 19 days this month. The rest are either regular days off, special days off, and SPRING BREAK–which is only 26 short days away–would someone tell the snow that?!
I am excited for spring weather…but it will also bring with it NO EXCUSES to exercise! I need to get out running again.
Things I must do in March:
- Figure out which PA required test to have Moon Boy take…and order it or sign him up.
- Complete my CITI training (part of the dissertation thing) and schedule my proposal review with my committee. Would love to have this thing over and done with by December….
Actually in terms of MUST dos…those are really the only two things. Now the list of SHOULD dos is much longer….but for now will focus on the must dos!
OH…and can I just point out….the other thing that flies by fast…MONEY! Got a little bit back in tax return…but after paying for Moon Boy and Silly Girl to go to summer camp, getting Silly Girl and Moon Boy plane tickets to Granny & PaPa’s house for the summer, paying the local taxes (it is such a privilege to live where we do & the taxes remind us that every six months)…it also was gone before it started. OH well, just grateful it was there to cover those not-so-normal expenses.
How about you? Was your February gone in the blink of an eye? Do you have must-do’s for March?
by Just_Aimee on February 18, 2010
I recently received a copy of Beehive Reader 1 to review. This BEAUTIFUL book is published by All About Spelling and correlates with their level 1 lessons. It is also can be used as a stand-alone early reader.
The book is hard-covered and printed on high quality paper. It is 160 pages and contains 10 stories. All stories have great illustrations and are phonics-based.
From the All About Spelling website:
Your beginning reader will delight in finding out what happens when…
…a busy cat lives in a windmill
…a sleepy bear cub takes a nap
…a grumpy duck demands a snack
…a singing bat befriends a lonely king
… a curious boy shrinks from tall to small
… and much more!
This book is below my children’s age level. It is for beginner readers. However, Silly Girl, who is 12, has learning disabilities–and although, I would not give her this book to read independently as she would likely be insulted, I was able to get her to read it to the little children she babysits for….It provided good practice for her and entertaining stories for the kids. She will add it to her ‘babysitting bag.’ It is one book to carry that contains 10 fun stories!!
The book costs $19.95–which seems high at first–but when you think of it as less than $2 per story it is definitely worth it; and it is something that can be passed down and used a lot. We loved the book and do recommend it if you have beginning readers.
DISCLAIMER: I was provided this reader free of charge for the purpose of giving my honest opinion as part of my involvement in TOS Crew. No other compensation was given.
