Category Archives: Goals

Is Everyone Getting Skinny Except Me??

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Around March, I started noticing a few of my regular blog reads posting fitness goals and talking about eating healthy and exercising more. Cool, they want to get in shape; good for them! That was the extent of my thinking about healthy eating and fitness. But as I saw more and more postings showing up in my Bloglovin feed devoted to these two topics, it made me re-evaluate my own habits and body (as I shove two mini tootsie rolls in my mouth at once).

Blogs I didn’t expect to see posting about fitness and health were now all about it. These ladies were the reason I finally put my own foot down and am deciding to take control of my health and well being. So Kelly, Raven, Whitney, Melissa, and Tyler…thank you for giving me the push that I needed!

The summer skirts and shorts are feeling a little bit more snug and the super cute tanks don’t fit as nice when there’s a little extra in the mid section. As much as I would love a brand new wardrobe (and really, what girl wouldn’t??), I don’t have either the money or the ambition to buy a size bigger than my usual. Now if I was going a size down, I WOULD FIND the money but that’s a whole different conversation if it comes to that! (It will…right?)

Toward the beginning of this week, Lauren Conrad had a post on getting healthy and fit (see? I told you everyone is talking about this business everywhere these days) and after going through it probably 5 or 6 times (it takes time for me to comprehend not eating chips or ice cream), I’ve decided to incorporate her tips along with other ideas I already had planned to present to you…

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You guys. You know what I’m talking about right?! That inevitable food baby that comes after you eat too much. Except you eat too much every time and it’s permanently there now? Please please please tell me I’m not the only one with this problem! I suck it in really well but it’s getting a little old so I have spent DAYS preparing this plan for you! (Okay, maybe it was only two hours or so but saying days sounds so much better doesn’t it?) We all remember Tone It Up Tuesdays right? Yeah that series didn’t last long so don’t feel bad if this is your first time hearing about it. Unlike TiuT though, I am not going to give a weekly check-in with this fitness plan. That’s practically setting myself up for failure. Ohhhhh the pressure! Instead I’ll be checking in the first and third Monday of the month. I don’t want to go overboard with fitness posts but I do still want to keep myself accountable. I am not nor will I ever be a fitness guru. I’m not going to try to compete with all the other incredible fitness and health blogs out there that know WAY more than me but I do want to stay on track and be able to discuss my progress. Let’s hope there is actually some to discuss! Come to think of it, I started gaining weight when I made a huge blog change and this became Read, Eat, Create. Hmm…a little ironic dontcha think?!

So what exactly does this plan consist of? Here we go…

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Part One: Food

1. Drink lots of water! You’re supposed to consume half your body weight in ounces of water per day. We all know I have problems drinking water, so I am going to use the incentive of every day I reach this goal, I am putting a dollar into a jar. Mind tricks are fun!

2. Trading certain foods for a healthier option. This chart that my friend Stephanie made is terrific for this!

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3. Choosing healthier snack options. I work at an office job so I am constantly snacking throughout the day. Here’s a short list of things I’m going to trade my junk food snacks out for.

6cbe33ca31d52794b328d13da39ca3d74. Choose one meal from every category every day (this was one of the big parts I took from Lauren Conrad post…I love that she included this!).

Breakfast Options

Lunch & Dinner Options

**OR**

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I just bought this book and have been drooling over all the healthy living recipes Gwen shares so I’m sure I’ll be going back and forth between Gwen’s recipes and Lauren’s plan!

5. No soda.

6. No white bread or fried foods.

7. No sugar (candy, brownies, cookies, cakes…all the stuff that people bring to work all the time…this is going to be the worst one!).

8. Don’t lose sight of your goals. I am making a small goals list everyday so it will result in the big goal eventually!

9. Have one cheat day (this is definitely for me…I can’t do this without at least a little indulgence)!

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Part Two: Fitness

1. Have two different workouts. One per week and alternate so your body never gets used to the same routine (<- look at that, I almost know what I’m talking about).

  • I’m going to do this DVD. There’s three different levels on this workout plan so as you progress you’re going to be moving up levels.
  • Instead of doing this workout every day though, I’m going to do this four days a week and two days a week I will be running 45 minutes or biking for 90 minutes. I’m also going to be doing 50 sit ups in the morning and at night and 60 second plank every morning and night.

2. Have one rest day.

3. Stay consistent. Every time I think of not working out one day, I’m just going to repeat the first quote. I love the 4, 8, 12 rule! Never would have looked at it that way!

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Now that I’m reading through this again, I’m worried that I’m getting too ambitious. Eeks! I’m going to try my damn hardest and if I can do this for 12 weeks I’ll be fine. 12 weeks is nothing! I can do anything for 12 weeks! Good gracious I started the pep talks already! I plan on starting this on Monday (I have two concerts this weekend and a cookout…you better believe I’ll be indulging this weekend before this new plan of action) so at least I have the weekend to clean out my pantry and eat get rid of all the naughty foods! Once Monday comes, you can bet your bottom dollar I’ll be posting pictures throughout my journey. Follow along if you don’t yet, username readeatcreate!

I would love to hear if any of you are on any health or fitness plans to get bikini body ready! Maybe we can encourage each other!

May Goals

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How is it the fifth month of the year already??  It’s also the 9th of May too so I don’t even know if this is relevant anymore but it took a while to figure out what my month goals would be. I didn’t want to make them too big because I want to enjoy this month and take in all the sunshine and warmth God has to offer but I still want to set goals and hold myself accountable for certain things. Before I get into what I came up with for May though, here’s a recap of what went down in April.

1) Spring cleaning – I was extremely successful in this!  It felt so good to declutter and get rid of/organize things.  I cleaned out the basement and got rid of garbage bags and tubs full of stuff. Our church had a rummage right when I was spring cleaning and it couldn’t have been better timing. I cleaned out my closets and drawers and got rid of so many clothes that I didn’t wear anymore. A lot of them still need to be dropped off at the resale shop but there were plenty that went to the church!  I also cleaned out and organized the linen closet (that took longer than anticipated) and the front hall closet. It feels like I have a fresh new start to the season!

2) I did do a lot of running in March and April (or a lot for me at least), a total of 20 miles to be exact, but I didn’t make it to my goal of running 35 miles by March 16.  I think it was a pretty big accomplishment though since I’m not much of a runner. Now I just need to start it up again because ever since my 7k in March I haven’t ran (hangs head in shammmme).

3) I did participate in the #EncourageBeauty challenge with Ana. I missed it a couple times but I didn’t best myself up or it because this isn’t something that I want to just do one month of my life. I want to make it a part of my life. I encourage you to as well!  Read all about it here!

4) I did start meal planning but I didn’t stick with it throughout the week though. Every week I had a whole meal plan laid but I would forget one or two ingredients or we would end up going out unexpectedly. I’m hoping to still keep doing this and maybe one of these weeks I will succeed!

5) Read three books – I stared three books but I never finished any of them. I bet you can guess what ones of my goals will be this month!

6) DIY projects from February goals – I (finalllllly) finished up those projects but haven’t had a chance to post all of them on the blog yet!  They will be up soon though!

7) Eating clean – Nope. Just nope.

May Goals
1)  Ride bicycle at least two times a week.
2) Complete 1,000 Gifts Challenge that I started…how long ago? A long time ago…
3) Post completed DIY projects onto blog.
4) Finish those three books I started.
5) Read one book cover to cover.
6) Create a weekly schedule (cleaning, grocery shopping, etc.)
7) Make 5 specialty drinks this month (when guests are over, family dinners, just for fun)

I think May will be a more successful!  Look at all those fun goals :)  How did you do last month with your goals?  Are you on track for this month already?  Happy 8-minutes-away-from Friday!

Please Accept My Apology // April Goals

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You guys. My blogging friends.  I have to apologize for the past week of being absent without any warning. Honestly I didn’t realize I wouldn’t have time or would be so wiped out from starting my new job that I never thought twice about it until last week Thursday when I noticed it had been three days since my last post.  I hope you can accept my begging apology!

While I’m on a role with apologizing I might as well add this one in. Remember when I used to be a food blogger?  Like give actual recipes pith food pictures and everything on here?  Yep…I can’t remember that far back either.  But I must say that I have a really relly good line up for you for the next couple weeks!  Prepare to eat your pretty hearts out!

This is slowly turning into a “I’m giving myself a pass” post. March was hectic. Between interviewing and getting a new job and quitting the first company I’ve been with since I graduated, it was a little scary but mostly exciting. Finding a new path in my career was one of my goals for 2013 (I didn’t mention this on the blog though for obvious reasons) and now that I’m in my second week with Harley-Davidson, I can honestly say that it was a good decision.

Unfortunately while I was busy fulfilling my career goals, I let the other ones slip through the cracks this month. It’s not something that I’m proud happened but it did nonetheless so I’m going to roll March and April goals together in hopes I will achieve last months goals this month.

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In addition to the goals I set for March, I am also going to add Spring Cleaning to my April goals.  This house is in need of a deep cleanse and as long as it’s going to rain here everyday (it’s been raining for the past 48 hours straight), I might as well make the most of my time indoors!

I promise next month will be more exciting when it comes to goals!  Thanks for understanding y’all!

Happy Wednesday!

The Leprechauns Got Me & Bailey’s Pudding Pie with Thin Mint Crust

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This weekend took on a whole new meaning of St. Patty’s day for me.  Instead of drinking like I’m 21, I ate.  And I ate and I ate.  It was ridiculous the amount of food (and Kopp’s custard) I consumed in those 48 hours.

We started the weekend ritzing it up at a fancy schmancy country club for a fish fry for my in-laws birthdays on Friday night.  It was delicious and wayyyy too much food.  But obviously I had to save room for the the best lemon bars ever for dessert.  I can always find room for dessert.

Remember that 7k run I was telling you I hoped would get snowed out?  Yeah that was Saturday and there was definitely fresh snow on the ground but not enough for it to be cancelled which was lame lame lame.  Standing in the mid 20 degree weather before the race was by far the worst part and I finally gained feeling in my toes again by mile two.  Ahh the things we do for a free cup of green beer.

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This little man kept me warm after the run (although he does look like a giant here!)

Sunday was dedicated to relaxing and making Bailey’s Pudding Pie for an Irish dinner my friend was hosting.  Check out this Guinness beef stew of hers.

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Seriously amazing.

I made this for dessert and even though it doesn’t make the prettiest presentation when on a plate, people did have good things to say about it.  Who wouldn’t?  It has Girl Scout cookies in it people!

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What’s that you say?  You don’t see a picture of how un-pretty it is on a plate?  Well let me tell you that I had every intention of taking a picture of the leftovers when I got home from work tonight since I didn’t get a chance to take a picture of it yesterday but lo and behold Mr. C. was rinsing out the pie pan and telling me how good it was when I walked in the doorway.  I almost cried.  And had some not so nice words to say.  But I couldn’t not share this recipe with you today.  Picture the slice of the pie to look a little something like crushed Thin Mints on the bottom for crust, chocolate pudding in the middle and this whipped cream and crushed Thin Mint cookies for garnish on top.  I bet your imagination is coming up with something a whole lot prettier than what I was going to present anyways!

If you’re all about the presentation for this though, you could use pint size jars for each serving.  They look really pretty and are probably more practical if you are making this for an outing (like a picnic) instead of a group dinner.

Bailey’s Pudding Pie with Thin Mint Crust (found originally on Crazy for Crust)

Ingredients

For the Crust
2 sleeves (17) Thin Mint (or the Keebler equivalent), finely ground, 2 tablespoons reserved for garnish*
6 tablespoons butter, melted*

For the Pudding
1 egg
1 ½ cups milk
2/3 cups sugar
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons corn starch
1 teaspoon instant coffee (a little less than 1 Via packet)
2 tablespoons butter
4 ounces good semi-sweet chocolate
¼ cup Bailey’s Irish Cream (1 mini bottle) {Don’t drink? No problem Just leave this out!}

For the Garnish
½ cup heavy whipping cream
2 teaspoons powdered sugar
Reserved 2 tablespoon of ground Thin Mints

Directions
1. Mix finely ground cookies with butter. Pour into pie pan, press to flatten, and chill until ready to use.
2. Whisk egg in a small bowl and set aside.
3. Whisk milk, cocoa, sugar, coffee, and corn starch in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins to thicken (about 5 minutes).
4. Remove from heat and pour one ladle of the hot chocolate mixture into the egg bowl, while whisking the egg. Then pour the egg mixture back into the pan and whisk to combine. Return to heat and cook just until it begins to boil.
5. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate and butter. Once melted, stir in the Bailey’s. Pour the pudding onto the cooled crust. Cover the top with plastic (press the plastic so that it is touching the top of the pudding) and chill until cooled.
6. Add cold heavy cream to a chilled bowl (I like to chill my bowl and whisk in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes prior to making whipped cream). Add powdered sugar and beat on high speed until stiff peaks form.
7. Portion whipped cream over cooled pudding and top with reserved crushed Thin Mints.

March Goals

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I wish I could say I was incredibly successful with all of my goals in February.  But I would be lying.  Here’s a recap of this month and how it went down.

1) Start meal planning – I had good intentions behind this.  Really I did.  It just didn’t happen.  Between Mr. C. starting his new job and working late every night plus him taking grad school classes two nights a week and not getting home until 10pm at the earliest, I wasn’t finding meal planning to be very effective.  Now that he is getting home at a normal(ish) hour from work and is down to one night class this semester, I’ll give it another shot.
2) Workout/be active 4-6 times a week FOR REAL this time – I might as well not have this on my goals list anymore.  It just doesn’t happen for me.  That’s all on this one.
3) Make at least 10 DIY projects (and post them on here of course) – I made three.  That’s 30% of what I was supposed to do.  In all honesty, two of the three that I made were a huge disaster.  I think that’s what made me avoid the others.
4) Work on my Crossroad Career booklet on a more consistent basis – Not only did I do this, but I had a better outcome that I ever expected.  More on this exciting announcement next week!
5) Log 20+ miles on Daily Mile for #TeamFMF with Raechel – I didn’t quite hit my 20 mile goal but I did run 11.62 miles.  This month I know I’m going to have to run a lot more because I am participating in a 7K with my friend Wendy on the 16th and need to be (mostly ready) even though I know I won’t be able to run 5 miles straight if my life depended on it.

I’m starting to question why I do these goal posts every month.  It’s becoming clear that I’m not very good at fulfilling my goals.  I think I just need to hold myself more accountable for them.  On that note, I think you’ll appreciate my first goal of the month of March!!

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1)  Sucessfully complete all of my March goals :)
2)  Log 35+ miles for #TeamFMF before March 16 (7K day)
3) Participate in the #EncourageBeauty Challenge with Ana & Hilary
4) Start meal planning
5)  Read 3 books
6)  Finish the DIY projects from February and post them on the blog
7)  Start eating clean(er) with the 80/20 rule (began this February 28)

Now excuse me while I go run on the treadmill while planning out my meals for the week and hot glueing something.  Multi-tasking has got to happen if I’m going to accomplish goal number one!  Haha :)   Happy Monday loves!!

What Will You Accomplish in February?

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Now that it’s February, I thought I would take a look back at my January goals and see what I’ve accomplished (and fill you in on my new goals!). Let’s just say January didn’t go as planned. I’d done better than what life was like in 2012 but I certainly didn’t hit every goal like I hope I would. It’s okay though, there was still improvement and I’ll just keep pressing on in February.

Do you remember this post where I listed my goals for January? Here’s a little review of what they were and how I did.

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1) 365 Project – I did stick with this project and I plan on doing a post on Saturday whoing you all my pictures so far. I’m LOVING this project!

2) Drink 6-8 glasses of water a day – This didn’t happen. By a long shot. In fact, I think I only had that many glasses of water three time total last month. Really bad, I know. I did drink water on a regular basis though (even if it wasn’t very much) and I am planning on keeping this goal for February. Who are we kidding? I’ll probably have this goal on my list for the remainder of 2013. Eventually I will be up to 6-8 glass everyday (I hope).

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3) Keep up with my SheReadsTruth devotional and get back in touch with God – I played catch up a lot with this one. I found that if my notebook and Bible weren’t in a visible spot everyday, I would forget about it. This is going to stay on the list too for February.

4) Be active 4-6 times per week (walk Jack, gym, etc.) – Considering I was sick almost the entire month, I was very consistent with being active. The first week I got to the gym four time (I was proud!). The second week I started doing P90X and did that five times that week. Week three was when I started feeling really miserable and only worked out twice. Week four I worked out once and by the time week five came around, my only exercise was walking the dog (and we weren’t going very fast AT ALL). Like I said…not my month for this. Here’s to a better and HEALTHIER February though!

5) No soda (except our homemade Sprecher Root Beer) – I was really good about this one up until two week ago when I came down with the worst cold and cough of 2013 and I had a Sprite. Sprite just makes things better when your sick so I really don’t feel that bad about it. But aside from that, it was only Sprecher Root Beer. We make our own root beer and it’s so hard to say no (so why even try is my theory apparently!). I’m thinking about foing a post on how we make it in the upcoming weeks. It could be fun right?

6) Spend money wiser instead of just spending to spend – I started keeping a record of what I spent everyday in a little notebook I kept in my purse. It turned out to be really helpful because I could see where all my money was going. I definitely decreased spending money on senseless things but we didn’t end up saving as much as I wanted to by the end of the month because of doctor bill and vet bills (we just found out Jack has a food allergy…you can only imagine how fun that one is).

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7) Love stronger in my marriage – This is an ongoing goal. I’m never going to reach an end to it and God strengthens me everyday in out marriage. One thing that this past month did teach me is that there are always going to be struggles. Some might not be as big as other but with struggles come the rewards. God tested our patience and taught us acceptance in January and we could not have been more grateful for the way things turned out. I’m not going to put this on my goal list for February simply because this is a goal I will be continuing to strive for for the rest of my life. My marriage and God are always going to test me and it’s up to me how I am going to react.

Whew…see what I mean? Not the best month ever. So I’m convinced February will be the best month for goals since January was such a let down. February goals are broken into two parts.

Goals carried over from January
1) Continue to drink was (reach 6-8 glass per day)
2) Continue my daily devotional with SheReadsTruth and keep it somewhere I am going to see it all the time
3) Continue logging money spent

Goals for February
1) Start meal planning
2) Workout/be active 4-6 times a week FOR REAL this time
3) Make at least 10 DIY projects (and post them on here of course)
4) Work on my Crossroad Career booklet on a more consistent basis – I should probably explain this one…This is a class I have been taking every Saturday morning since January to help me figure out which direction I would like to see my career go. The more work you put into it, the more you get out of it but I need to start buckling down and putting more work in!
5) Log 20+ miles on Daily Mile for #TeamFMF with Raechel – Go Team Saffron!

How are you guys going with you new years resolutions or goals? Do you make month to month goals? I hope I’m not the only one who does this but the month to month goal setting keeps me more accountable. Plus then I actually remember what the goals were!

My Take on New Years Resolutions

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2013 is going to be the best year yet.  I can feel it.  I had a pretty good year in 2012 that you can read about here if you missed it but with its highs, it definitely had its low points.  This year is going to be amazing though.  I can feel it in my bones.

I’m changing some things up when it comes to resolutions though.  The past has proven that my new years resolutions last about 2 weeks before they fall flat on their face and I am back in my old ways.  This year I am doing monthly goals instead of year resolutions.  By doing this, I know there is a ”due date” that it has to be completed by, and if it goes well I’ll add that goal to the next month along with new goals.  I’m hoping for massive success with this!  But I’ll keep you updated as the year goes by :)

  1. 365 Project - You can follow this on Instagram
  2. Drinks 6-8 glasses of water a day
  3. Keep up with my She Reads Truth devotional and get back in touch with God
  4. Be active 4-6 times a week (walk Jack, gym, etc.)
  5. No soda (except my homemade Sprecher Root Beer…more on that later)
  6. Spend money wiser instead of just spending to spend
  7. Love stronger in my marriage

What are your goals for the month/year?

365

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It’s almost the new year!  Would you ever try a 365 project?  I have never done one before but heard about someone who tried it and it intrigued me.

It’s a project where you take a picture a day for 365 days.  I know it sounds like a lot, especially if you are narrowing it down to only one topic but it’s totally doable.  I feel like it is a really great way to get my creative juices flowing especially since I have gotten into photography a lot more since I started this blog.

My big picture goal is to become a better photographer so this is going to be perfect.  I’ve noticed lately that I tend to grab my camera any chance I get and it’s constantly at my side.  (And when the camera isn’t there, my phone camera is.)  I’m excited to see how my creativity will come out with using different angles and lighting when all the typical shots have been taken already.

Let’s just say I am ready for this challenge!  Is anyone else up to it??

This year, I am starting January 1st with the subject being my home!  I plan on using this blog and Instagram as a source to post pictures and at the end of the year, I’m hoping to make a book of it.  I’m sure there will be days that I will miss because I won’t be home but I can’t wait to see what this challenge will teach me!

Now the big question…who’s willing to try with me?!  It doesn’t have to be a photography challenge; it can be any kind of challenge!  I’d love to hear if you’ve tried this before or if you plan on starting a 365 challenge with me in 2013!

26 Before 27

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 These are my 26 choice goals I am hoping to accomplish before my 27th birthday.  I think I can do them all in the next year, I really want to at least.  We’ll see how these next 365 days treat me!  Better get started now  =)

Tone Up Tuesdays

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Two weeks.  It has now been two full weeks since I started “Tone Up Tuesdays”.  It’s also been two weeks since I’ve worked out.  I’m failing miserably at this.  I feel like I have a never ending list of things fast approaching and when I’m finished with one, I need to either take a breather, go to work, or move on to the next task.  It’s amazing I’m still able to blog daily (nix yesterday).  I’m pretty sure this blog is the only thing keeping me sane.  I’m still going to press on though.  I will get back on the exercise wagon.  I will achieve this goal.  I will.  I will.  I will.

Because I’m clearly not one to give advice on working out or staying motivated (you didn’t me to tell you that though) I’m not going to waste my time or yours posting inspirational quotes to keep pressing on or pictures of toned bodies that I wished I looked like but am apparently too busy (lazy?) to work for this week.  Instead I’m going to leave you with this bald headed man’s voice and the sincere words in his song.  It’s been pulling at my lately and making my heart ache. 

Until then my friend…