Our "Journey" Thus Far...

Well, we are two weeks into our journey (annoying word usage #1) and the day is here - Brad and I have both weighed in and we both left with a smile on our face. :) It has been an incredible journey (annoying word usage #2) thus far. We have stuck to our guns! No alcohol! No fast food! No eating out! The journey (annoying word usage #3) has been tough at times - I definitely wanted to eat these amazing looking "cookie dough brownies" at Bible study last week, but I resisted! This week's results!

Drum roll please...

Brad:    - 9 lbs lost

Stacie:  -10 lbs lost

Woot woot! We are excited. We understand that our weight loss may slow down a bit over the next few weeks (since we aren't dealing with as much water retention, etc), but we are still committed to the journey (annoying word usage #4) and won't give up! Now I'm off to make dinner: Buffalo burgers, salad, and maybe just maybe, some sugar free jello! Yum!

P.S.  You can personally thank Stephanie Selden of Denver, Colorado for the excessive use of the word "journey" in this post. :) Love ya girl!

Binge

–noun 1. a period or bout of excessive indulgence, as in eating, drinking alcoholic beverages, etc.

The aforementioned word is sufficient in describing the process which took place in my household shortly after Brad and I got married. We binged. On anything we could see. We had been so stressed about the wedding - we were saving money and trying to make sure we fit into our dress and suit. So, afterwards, we basically just let it go. We went out to eat about 5 times a week - and if we weren't going out, we were ordering in or buying a frozen pizza or on the off chance that we actually cooked at home, it was something terrible - like chocolate cake for dinner. (Note: this confession is entirely embarrassing.)



Anyways, I got put on a steroid back in January and gained even more weight. After I got off the steroid, Brad and I decided to get our butts in to gear and start to get back to our pre-wedding bodies. We started our "journey" on March 6, 2011 and have included the rules of "no fast food, no drinking alcohol, and no eating out." We even went through our house and got rid of (donated to my brother and sister-in-law) all the food we can't eat. We'll be consuming lean protein, and fruits and vegetables that are low on the glycemic index. Because of Brad's low blood sugars, he'll eat slightly differently than me and a few more times a day. I will be documenting our weight loss every two weeks (which means, look for an update in 3 days on our first two weeks!) Here are our start pictures. Brad still looks cute, but my God...my hips! Whoa! Motivation!

A Different Perspective

The last 3 days have been really crazy. My nephew Cooper was born on the 28th of February and he's made quite a splash. :) He's really forced me to find a new perspective on my brother. He's always just been my brother. He's 5 years older than me, so he's been around for as long as I have. I've always loved him and thought he was great (except from about ages 5-12, when the moments of sibling camaraderie were few and far between - but even then, I loved him). But, our relationship has changed over the years. No doubt, it something to do with the fact that we have both aged and matured. But I think we've also seen each other in life scenarios that completely change the way you feel about them.

I was looking through old pictures yesterday and found one of John holding me - almost 25 years ago (when my parents took me home from the hospital). And then I looked through my wedding pictures from September - the ones of me and my brother. He's not a nerf-gun blazing, lego playing, ninja turtle action figure collector anymore. (Well, I imagine if you set legos in front of him, he'd still be pretty giddy.)

The last 3 days that I've gone to the hospital to see my nephew, I've seen John hold Cooper and it hit me just this last time that John is his DAD. John is a dad. Wow. He is someone's father. My heart melted as I looked at John, beaming with pride. I've already been impressed with the way he cares for his son - he's quite possibly the best swaddler in town! He's a family man - taking care of his wife, also. He was not afraid to hint that Jessie needed rest when the room was full of guests. I thought that was so cute! I'm so proud of John - so proud of his response to what is an overwhelming responsibility. I'm so proud, because I'm confident that he'll be a great dad...and one that probably plays legos. :)

In Love With Another Man

Two days ago, I bit the bullet and finally told Brad that I was in love with another man. He was obviously devastated, but I'm sure he'll make it. My new man is so handsome - not much for conversation - and quite frankly, a little needy (he's kind of weepy when he gets hungry or tired), but I can't stay away from him. Could you?

So, obviously, most of you have probably figured out that I, in fact, am NOT cheating on my husband, but I am now AN AUNT! Cooper William Ulrich was born on February 28th at 9:53pm, weighing in at 7lbs 2oz and measuring 20.5 inches long. He has strawberry blonde hair - and depending on how the light hits it, can look even platinum blonde. He's adorable and healthy - all we can ask for!

I'm so very proud of my brother and sister-in-law. They shocked us when they told us that they were pregnant - we had no idea they had been trying for awhile to have a baby. It wasn't even in my mind that someday they may be having a baby, so what an awesome surprise! About a month before he was born, John and Jessie asked Brad and I if we would also be Cooper's God-parents and we happily accepted. I know I'm going to love being an aunt to this little man - he is perfection!

Catchin' Up

 Well, this is embarrassing. It has been over 2 months since I last blogged. I was certain that I would be diligent with my blogging efforts, but I failed. BUT, I'm back. As a little recap: There was Christmas.....and then it was pretty uneventful. So here's some Christmas pics to tide you over. :)

We spent Christmas day with Brad's mom and her husband and Brad's sister and her fiance. It was a lot of fun and Brad's mom got me exactly what I wanted. Much appreciated mommy-in-law! We spent the rest of the day at my family's house and played a mean game of "Apples to Apples." We had lots of fun and are so thankful for family! P.S. The baby is my cousin Jacquelyn's baby. We were just getting our fix at Christmas. 

 

A Bowling Good Time

Every Tuesday night, we have Bible study with one of the coolest groups of people we've ever met! ;)  No, seriously, they are really great and it's been awesome getting to know them. It's a good group for Brad and I, because we are one of four newly married couples. Three of us got married this year, in fact! It's been really good to discuss our faith (and the impact marriage has on it) with people who are going through it too! Anyways, since it's close to Christmas, our group decided take a night off and just hang out. We went to Old Chicago and ate dinner and then headed to Sempeck's Bowling Alley in Elkhorn, which is by far the cleanest, non-smokiest, coolest bowling alley atmosphere I've experienced. (Note: I do understand that "non-smokiest" is not a word.)   Man, I didn't realize until we got there, but Brad and I needed to get out of our house! And thank God we did. Woohoo! We had so much fun! Our bible study group made it more fun by having a guys-against-girls competition and although I am disappointed that the guys won overall, I can still say that I killed my husband in both games. He's good at many things - bowling isn't one of them. :) Also, Brad and I came straight from work to the bowling alley, so yes, that top left pictures is me...in a dress....and tights....and bowling shoes.

Why yes, my husband is a dork.

Brad is by far the most interesting person I've ever met. He is weird and has lots of funny quirks. For example, on any given day when Brad takes off his shoes, there's about a 99% chance that his socks don't match. Admittedly, it's one of the most endearing thing about him. :)

Anyways, one of his other quirks is the obsessive care taking of his leather boots - seriously, he polishes them about once a week and gets slightly grumpy if he scuffs them. He had 2 pairs (brown and black) that he wore to work pretty much daily. Last year during the snowy/icy season, his black pair got pretty banged up. I think it was a mixture of the moisture, salt, chemicals, etc. from winter. When Brad and I got engaged, he told me that he needed a new pair of black boots to wear with his suit. After much persuasion, I obliged and he got a new pair of black Kenneth Cole boots. The price tag made me want to throw up, but I have to admit that they really were very nice. He didn't wear them until the day of our wedding (that was our deal). But, now that said wedding is over, he wears them to work.

As winter set in with snow, rain, etc., Brad insisted that he would take better care of these boots and ensure that winter didn't ruin them. Enter the plastic bags. If Brad forgets to bring tennis shoes with him to wear to and from work, he wraps plastic bags around his shoes. It's quite a sight and if you're anything like me, you'll laugh hysterically if you ever get to see it in real life. :) I love him.