Skinny BBQ Chicken Pizza!!!

Hey there Strangers!  It's been, yet again, forever since I've posted anything.  My main focus has been on exercise and eating healthy, plus planning for for my sis's bridal shower, and my friends bridal shower!  So, I've been really busy and trying to stay focused on my goals:)  I hope everyone has had a great month!

This month has been great for me!  I had my sister's bridesmaids and my mom over to my house to work on the bridal. We did ALOT for it and I still have some other things to put together!  I don't want to post anything on here, until it's over with because I'm afraid my sis will see:-o  I want to keep everything a surprise from her:-)

On Wednesday, the hubby and I tried something new and it was a skinny BBQ "mini" pizza!  Let me tell you there were VERY delicious:):)  I just have to share the recipe with you all!

Yumminess Squared!!!

You all know that I'm all about quick and easy.  This recipe is right down that alley!

Ingredients:

- Soft shell tacos(the biggest ones, burrito sized)
 - 1/2 of a can of canned chicken
- Baby Ray's BBQ sauce( or another BBQ sauce of your choice)
- Low mositure/ part skim Mozzierella shredded cheese
- Onions

The directions are really pretty simple!

First, grab a pizza pan and spray it with Pam.  Next, place your soft shell taco on the pan and squirt some BBQ sauce on.  Then, sprinkle on some chicken, onion, and top with cheese!  Voila, finished!  It sure is yummy!!!  The hubby and I also made turkey pepperoni pizza with onions, pizza sauce(of course), and cheese!  That one was just as easy:)

Well, I hope all of you have an amazing Friday and enjoy your weekend!!!  I know I will be:)  It's suppose to be warming up to the 40's here and hopefully melt some of our 2' piles of snow!

Thanks for stopping by:):):):)

Until next time!!!!

Tropical Paradise!

As I posted yesterday, I went on a trip with the hubby!  The hubby told me that, once I lost 40 lbs that he was going to take me on a trip....so we went to Florida:)  Fort Meyers beach, Florida and it was well deserved and needed!!!  I loved every bit of it.  It was very relaxing, and fun!  We actually got a pretty good deal through Allegiant and the resort was very nice!  I think it would be a great spot for families because it's in a quite neighborhood and it seems to be very safe.  We went jet skiing with dolphins and even got the jet skis up to 55 mph...which was exhilarating:)

Cruising in our car!

View from our room!

Our resort and the jet skis we went on!

Poor little guy had a sinker stuck to him:(

10 More Pounds, Gone!!!

Hey Everyone!!!  Sorry I have been MIA for SO long...I have been really busy between: the holidays, school, staying healthy, and spending time with family and friends!  It's crazy that the time has gone by this quickly already.  I can't believe it's almost Christmas!!!!  I have lots to share with you all:)  First, about a little over a week ago, I hopped on the scale and couldn't believe what the scale was telling me.....well I could because I have been working my booty off!  I was down another 10+ lbs:):):)  That puts my total weight loss at 41 lbs!!  I'm super duper excited and am happy to tell you I am down to 156 lbs.  The last time I saw this number was when I first started teaching 6 YEARS ago!  It's just nuts!

I wanted to show you all my before and after pictures, so you can see what 30 lbs looks like.  Just a reminder for everyone, I started out at 197 lbs, but I didn't start taking pics until 188 lbs.  I was just too ashamed to take my pic, but I got enough courage to do it eventually:)

Here is the side view:

I can't believe that this is only 30 lbs, I'm wishing now that I would have taken a pic when I was 197 lbs.  Then it would be a true comparison of what I really lost!  Oh...well...shoulda. coulda. woulda!  I used to wear a size 15/16 in misses and now I can wear a 9/10 in misses!

I know that 40 lbs really isn't a HUGE amount of weight compared to others who have lost weight, but for me it is HUGE!  6 months ago, I thought that I could not lose any weight and that it was impossible. Well, I definitely proved myself wrong and it just makes me feel so great, like I can do just about anything:)

 I still thank my lucky stars to have such a wonderful support system that has been there for me throughout this whole journey! Thank you SO, SO much for always being there for me and you know who your are:)

Well,I hope you all have a great night!!!

Thanks for stopping by:):):)

Until next time!!!!

 

 I've linked up to:

Another 10 lbs lost!

It's hard to believe that it's been close to 3 months since I started my weight loss journey!  I am currently down 29 lbs from 197 lbs:)  This means I only have 31 lbs more to go before I get to my goal of 137 lbs!!!  Hip-hip-hooray:):):)  I know that I have lost weight, but can't believe it's 29 lbs gone! 

This has been a great feat and it will even become a much bigger one by the time I reach my goal at the end of December:)  Since I lost another 10 lbs from my comparison picture that I posted here.  I'm going to do another comparison pic, so you can see the difference of what 20 lbs lost looks like.

Looking at these comparison pics, really puts things into prospective for me!  20 lbs is quite a big change! I just wish that I took a picture when I was at 197 lbs!


About less than 1 month ago, I searched my closet to see what clothes(my "skinny" clothes) fit me.  I knew how much weight I lost according to the scale, but as far as actually visualizing it and being able to give myself FULL credit for what I did was hard; until I started trying on my "skinny" clothes.  Now, my "skinny" clothes are a little loose on me and soon will be my "bigger" clothes!

When I put on a pair of pants that fit me a little snug when I was at my biggest and they practically fell off of me, I was brought to tears!  Right then was when it clicked for me that I lost that weight and what a change it had made!  All of that hard work and continued hard work is definitely being able to be seen.  Have any of you been in this same situation, where you don't realize how much you've changed until you try on those dreaded "fat" pants?

It makes me feel much more confident in myself, not only in my looks, but with my job, relationships with hubby, family, and friends:)  I know have a NEW outlook on life and it's much more positive!  Plus, I have LESS stress and don't worry about the small things anymore:)

My running plan is in full swing and I just ran a little under 2 miles tonight!!!  I'm soo pumped and excited about this!  I can't believe all of the things that my body can handle now that I've lost this weight.  I'm thinking about what else it can handle when I even lose more!

Here's to no longer having to dread wearing my "fat" pants and being more confident in myself!!!

Thanks for stopping by:):):):)

Until next time!!!!!

St. Louis Part 2

Hey everyone!!!  Like I said yesterday, I wanted to share lots of pics with you because St. Louis is such a beautiful and fun city.  In this post, I wanted to share with you what I did in order to eat semi-healthy while vacationing.  If it was a perfect world then I wouldn't have gained 1 lb, but the truth is that I did.  I know why, but doing what I did definitely helped me keep off even more weight!

Alright, Rule number 1 (for me) was to eat a salad or something really light for lunch.  So here is one  pic of my salad:):)  I swear I ate more than one salad, I just didn't take anymore pics! 

Hard Rock Cafe Salad

Odds N' Ends

Happy Friday!!!!  I'm so pumped to see Magic Mike tonight!!  I really just can't wait:)  I will definitely post a review about this movie, if you should see it in the theaters or not!

I did a little happy dance today for 2 reasons: 1)  I finished my first Masters class today and I might say that I put ALOT of time and work into that class(I'm soo glad I'm finished for the summer!)  2)  I am down 8.6 lbs, so I can round up to 9 lbs!!!  Woohoo:):):)  I plan on loosing 1 more pound this week before we leave for vacation!  Then I will be down a total of 10 lbs!!!

I have to say I give a lot of credit to loosing this weight to eating things like this:

Eat this for lunch everyday!

"Bicycle, Bicycle, Bicycle! I Want to Ride My Bicycle"

Happy Hump day All!!!!  Here we are half way through the week...omgoodness!  Where has the time gone?!?!  I can't wait until this weekend because 1)  I will be finished with my Master's class and 2) I get to watch Magic Mike with some amazing friends!!!  You might ask, what's Magic Mike?  I think it will be one of the BEST movies of the year!  I will show you one picture and then you will know what I mean...

Just look at all of that yumminess!

Fashion Friday!!!

Hey Friends!!!  TGIF, am I right?!?!?  Woohoo to Fridays, even though I have Fridays all the time during the summer!  I know that's not fair, but it sure is nice:)  I told you last post that we're going camping..oh..ya!  I can't wait!  I'm planning on eating healthy and exercising so I don't put on weight over the weekend, wish me luck!

In my Pumped Up Kicks post, I showed you my new shoes and I told you that Dana and I really did some damaged, as far as shopping goes.  Well, I wanted to share with you a few other things that I bought.  We LOVE to go shopping at Maurices, in fact we are totally obsessed!  We are practically walking Maurices manikins, not even lying!!  I bought a couple different things on Wednesday.  Here are two of the items that I bought:)

Isn't this dress adorbs?  I'm loving the color and even though the dress is a little bland, the pop of purple, offsets the blandness.  Don't you think?  See those shoes I'm wearing, those weren't from Maurices, but Kohl's which is another fav of mine:)

My dress was $35, the necklace $14, and the shoes $30!  Not too bad!

The other item that I bought from Maurices was this top....

Maurices Special $29

I wanted to purchase this because as of right now it doesn't fit me:(  Sad, I know, I know and you might ask then why buy it?!?  Since I've been making healthier choices for what I eat and how I exercise, I plan on being able to wear this shirt by the end of July for our county fair:)  Making a goal like this really motivates me to continue with loosing weight!  I really love this shirt because it is only 1 sleeve, the color, and the print!  I think this will be a goal that I can and WiLL reach by the end of July.  At that time, I will write on post and show you how I look:)

I have so many other goals for my weight loss, but I will have to share with you at a later time.  I need to get ready to go camping!!!  I hope you guys have an awesome weekend!

Thanks for stopping by:):):)

Until next time!!!!!

Pumped Up Kicks!!!

Hey everyone!!! Today is Thursday:):)  I am incredibly happy because a) I'm almost finished with my first Master's class B) I almost have my final, huge project finished AND c) we're going camping on Friday for the weekend:):):)  It's our first time camping for the season.  I know though I will need to watch what I eat and drink, to keep off the weight I already lost!  I will share with you all what I did to ensure that I will eat healthy, even when we camp!

Yesterday,  I went shopping with one of my friends, Dana and we really went all out!!!  Yes, we did and we had soo much fun.  It was nice just to get out and not have to worry about deadlines and have good ole fun!  I haven't bought a pair of tennis shoes in a LONG time....how long you might ask, well close to 5 years!!  GASP!  I know, pretty sad:(  Now, since I've been exercising every day, I need a pair of sneakers that will give me the support I need.  Soooo, I bought 2 new pair of shoes and I LOVE them!  They feel A-mazing and look pretty awesome, too:)  I'm a huge fan of Asics.  When I used to run, I would always grab them.  Naturally, that's what I bought and let me tell you my feet are in heaven!!

I love PINK!!!

My New Best Friend!

Happy Tuesday everyone!!!!  I'm glad it's Tuesday because it means that I have Zumba!  In case some of you don't know what Zumba is, it is a fun aerobic dance class.  It doesn't even feel like your in aerobics class.  It feels like you are just dancing, having a great time, and definitely burning ALOT of calories!!!  I'd like to think that when I work out this I'd look like the people in the pic below.....

Fun Stuff!

On My Way to a New Me!!!!

Another week past and here we are half way through June already!  Where has the time gone?!?!  This summer has just been flying by and I want it to slow down just a little.  I don't want the beginning of the school year to be here already.  As I have said a couple times in different posts, I have started a new chapter in my life that revolves around making a healthier me!  I have struggled with weight all of my life and I still am.  That is why I have decided that it's long past due to start to make better choices for eating and exercising.

I have been a yo-yo dieter ever since I can remember.  I take off 30 pounds and keep it off for a year and then put it back on and then some.  Lose 40 pounds and stay at that weight for a while until something happens in my life and then I pig out because life gets hard.  I have always turned to food for comfort.  Well, this is a point in my life where it has to STOP!  I can no longer let food control my life, choices, and me.  I need to wake up and be able to look in the mirror and be proud of what I see.  I need to know that when I have children that I can give them 100% of my energy and that I can keep up with them.  I don't want to worry about health issues that could happen to me because I am overweight!  I don't want to sneak food at night and think it's okay because "no one will ever know."  I don't want to wake up every morning and be down on myself because of the food choices I made from the day/night before.  I want to feel a since of accomplishment, that I can overcome these issues.   I need to feel confident and good about myself again...

I have begun this new chapter in my life as of 2 weeks ago and it was mainly due to one of the best friends that a girl could have!  I've been wanting to start this new chapter, but I always made excuses about my diet and why I wasn't sticking with it.  Dana was just the push I needed to get me going, and I'm so grateful for that!  Her and I work out together every day during the week.  I have officially lost 6 pounds so far with my new lifestyle changes:):)  I'm so proud of myself for continuing with this and I know this time I WILL follow through with this and continue with this lifestyle change.  I wanted to share with you some pictures of myself throughout the last 4 years and you can definitely see changes.

2009 - I was pretty comfortable at this weight.