Back in the Habit: Six Simple Adjustments to Get Back on Track

Well, it happened.

I knew I'd gained a bunch of weight, but the reality of it hit me when I went to get dressed for our mid week church service and none of my casual skirts fit me. Yup, not even the "fat" ones.

Yikes! Talk about a wake up call!

I had done really well through Gen's pregnancy. I actually LOST weight by the time she was born, and then lost even more by the Summer! We're not talking a massive amount of weight, but right around the 30lb ballpark. It felt amazing!

But, what did I do? I got cocky and figured I could go back to my old ways and somehow maintain the weight. Idiot.

Now, here I am at my heaviest non-pregnant weight - again.

I'm not gonna sit in my fat pants (which I had to go buy because I couldn't fit the other ones. #truestory) and cry about it. I was the one that stopped exercising. I was the one who over ate...and ate...and ate. I cannot blame anyone but myself, so why bother?

It's time to just suck it up and get back in the habit.

No diet. No weighing. No measuring. No short-term or long term goals.

All of those seem to hurt me in the long run.

Here's my simple plan and new favorite phrase.

Getting healthy can happen in any income level. It doesn't require a gym membership, fancy menu or pricey fitness guru. When it comes right down to it, for the majority of us (without thyroid/metabolism/etc issues) it's all about being more active and eating less.

So then, why is it so hard?!

Penny Pinching

While the vast majority of the US is just now coming out of the worst/longest winter - ever - CA has seemingly avoided the season all together. Okay, so we had this random couple weeks of SUPER cold weather, but then it was right back into the 50's & 60's.  It was like Ca got all of Winter in 2 weeks!

Now, here we are in mid April and we're already in the 80s! Crazy, right?! Even for us!

The Perfect Summer Cookie

I teach Sunday School at our church, and I do my best to bring some sort of treat with me each Sunday. I have tried several different cookie & brownie recipes but now that weather is warming up, I thought I'd try something a bit different.

After searching through Pinterest I found something that looked like the perfect fit.

We Now Return to Our Regularly Scheduled Programming

I wanted to take a minute and thank all of you for your patience over the last couple months as I stepped away from the blogosphere. You greatly encouraged me by your continued support via facebook, private messages & emails.

From seemingly out of the blue, I fell into some sort of funk. I guess it all started early February.

 Genevieve's birthday was coming & so was a move! I started planning, packing, dreaming, measuring, ordering, etc, and put everything on hold.

I stopped doing schoolwork.

I stopped doing chores around the house - seriously, why put it away if I'm just gonna box it?!

I stopped blogging.

My brain was so focused on what I wanted to do, I couldn't do what I needed to do. 

All of my efforts could not have changed the fact that the Lord had other plans.

2 weeks before the move date - it fell through. Ugh. It was a kick in the gut. I had cleaned out closets, packed boxes, planned each room, measured for furniture, dreamed of parties and family gatherings, and POOF! It was all gone with one phone call.

Not gonna lie: It totally thew me for a loop. I was beyond disappointed. But, after a little cry & some talking/praying with the Hubbs, I was okay. I realized that God has a plan for us, and if it doesn't include a new-to-us house, then so be it! Who knows what He could be saving us from, or what He may have in store for us further down the road!? Who am I to question His plan? I decided to take on the challenge of streamlining the house and am looking forward to buying new furniture and some decorations to make it feel a bit more like "me".  (Can't wait to share what I've done so far!!)

Then the inevitable happened: Gen's birthday came. It was a very emotional day for me, but I was more thrilled than sad. Even tho' we're saying goodbye to our "baby", we are excited to experience the next phase in her life! Bring on the toddler phase!

On the actual day, we enjoyed some family time! We went to the mall to get her ears pierced and treated the family to dinner out & a sweet.

She was such a brave girl! She only cried for a minute and then was back to her normal happy self. 

A couple of days later we had her party! It was a BLAST!

Isn't she the CUTEST?!?! 

Everything went exactly how I wanted! The guests, the food, the cake, the decorations, the atmosphere - it was all perfect!

It should have been like a shot of B12 to get me going again.

But, for some reason, I was still stuck on pause.

Schoolwork was neglected, boxes were still packed and gathering dust and although I had several topics to post, I just couldn't find the energy to blog.  I wish I could give some sort of explanation, but the honest truth is, I just didn't want to.

Maybe it was hormonal? Maybe it was a tiny bit of depression? All I know is I just didn't care.

Well, fast forward to mid-March and I was FINALLY coming out of the funk.

I hit the the house with a vengeance. I started un-packing, purging, cleaning, sorting & organizing and we got back into the schoolwork.

Now, I'm back in the full swing of things. We're getting on task with our school work, the house is under control and my head is clear.

So, guess what?!

We can now return to our regularly scheduled programming!

There is so much coming to the blog! I have more of the Quilting 101 series, a few fun recipes and a series of money saving DIYs that I think you'll really love.

And the BIG NEWS!!!

June first will be the GRAND OPENING of a Lissiegirl Blogs! Planner Store!!! I am SO EXCITED! Currently up to my nose in fonts, images, tables. It's a bit overwhelming, but I'm having a ton of fun designing.  Over the next few weeks, I'll be taking polls, sharing sneak peaks and even doing a give-a-way! Make sure you "like' my fb page & comment every once in a while so you can keep up with the latest news!

Again, thank you for your continued love and support as I plug away.

Quilting 101 Part 2: Tools of The Trade

Thank you all for your positive and encouraging responses to the first post of this series! 

I'm so excited to share this part with you, but it will be a bit of a long & meaty post, so let's not waste any time! 

DIY Hair Accessory Storage

Not gonna lie. This whole baby girl thing is A M A Z I N G!

But there are SO many little things that were totally unexpected. Today, we're gonna tackle one. 

What on earth do you do with all the hair accessories?!?!?!

As adorable as this is, I do not recommend trying to get your infant to wear every head wrap in the house.
Oh, and no babies were harmed in the making of this most excellent collage. 

After asking all of you Mammas of daughters on the Lissiegirl Blogs! fb page, and searching through Pinterest boards,  I finally have a solution! 

Easy Peasy Mac n Cheesy

I will never buy packaged mac n cheese again!

Seriously, this is the easiest, yummiest, mac n cheese I've ever made.

Yeah, it will cost a bit more than boxed, but it's made with ingredients I can control, and adding the meat, makes a real meal, so it's totally worth it.

Quilting 101: Before You Get Started

Welcome to my first tutorial for the blog!

Christmas Carnival & a $300 Amazon Gift Card!

{Enter at bottom of post}

Perfectly Simple Salt Dough Ornaments

Call me tardy to the party, but I have to share this with you!

Yes, Christmas Day has come and gone, but I'll bet 9 out of 10 of you are still sitting in a house completely decked out & you're all probably munching on lingering treats & sweets, so it's really not that much of a stretch.

Believe me, when you're freaking out next year on what to do for the kids in your Sunday School class, or for the kid's school Christmas party, this is the one tutorial you'll be glad you pinned.

It's a bit of a long post, so grab a mug of something warm, put your feet up & enjoy!

Life and Stuff.

So, balancing a family with church and homeschooling and holidays and flu season is a bit more time consuming than I'd originally anticipated and I'm having a hard time keeping up with the blog.

It isn't for lack of topic - I've got partial posts and un-edited photos all over the place!

It's really just a lack of time, or rather lack of me organizing my time.

This week I am DETERMINED to come up with a schedule that works for us & stick to it!

Please bear with me as I get into a groove.

Thanks so much for all the support on the fb page! Keep it up by following me on Instagram & Pinterest!

As always, much love!

Oh, and here are some random photos of the kids, just for fun. =D

Gen loves orsing around with brothers. 

We recently had a "daycation" in SF & our room was on the top floor - the 14th story! They were super excited!! 

Splitting a YUMMY Sundae at Ghirardelli in SF. Mmmmm....

Seriously. Adorbs.

I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday!

Come back soon! 

Meal Planning Basics

Recently, a couple different ladies have asked me about how I make our single income stretch. Goodness...what a question! I could fill a book with tips on that one. lol! But, I do have a few ways that I talk about frequently. Today I'll share my biggest help!

Meal Planning.

Yup! It might sound simple, but meal planning saves us at least $200 a month, probably more!

($200 might not sound like a lot to some of you, but that's our water/trash bill, my cell phone bill, a jumbo box of diapers & a box of wipes. The savings for us, is huge.)

How can something so simple, save us so much?

Getting Connected - My First Blog Hop

I've signed up for a blog party! I am very new to this, so I hope I'm doing this right. 

 Click the photo & check out all these other great blogs! 

What's for Dinner? How 'bout some Cowboy Casserole?!

Cowboy Casserole is another family favorite that makes the meal plan at least once a month.

Quick, easy, inexpensive, filling and so yummy!

I have tinkered with this recipe (adapted from a Taste of Home Recipe) for the better part of the year, and I think I've come up with the perfect mix. 

Give it a whirl & let me know what you think! 

Corn Maz'n

Every year our family takes a day to spend at
 Dell'Osso Farms.

We are super lucky to have this just down the street from us! There's a HUGE Corn Maze (this year, the field had 3 separate mazes!), General Store, Kiddy Rides, Tram, Hay & Train Rides, Punkin' Shootin', Gem Mining, Pony Rides, and the list goes on!

If you're ever in the area between the first & 31st of October, you NEED to stop by!

Believe me, you'll be glad you did.

Here's an album of our day on the farm.

Enjoy! 

Nutella Pecan Pie.

Recently, our church held a Chili & Pie contest. It was so much fun!

Would you believe I won 3rd AND 2nd place?! Crazy, right?! Who knew I could do that? lol!

I knew I wanted to enter 3 pies - a fruit, a creme & a nut. I also wanted to enter at least one unique pie, so I searched Pinterest & came across a few recipes for a Nuttella Pecan Pie!

It's simple, really. You take a traditional Pecan Pie & smother the bottom crust with Nutella.

Easy Peasy!

Silly me, I didn't take ANY photos when making the pies for the contest, so I've got nothing to share with you about the Apple Pie or the Mocha Creme Pie. BUT! I totally over bought nuts & had another single crust, so I'm whipping up the Nutella Pecan Pie for the hubbs.

This time, I remembered to take photos. Yay!

Blessings...from a bag?

Over the last week or so, the Lord has blessed me with bags!

No, not the ones under my eyes or around my waist....lol!

But, bags filled to the brim with thoughtfulness, generosity, encouragement and love.

You may be thinking to yourself: "You can't put those things in a bag...".

But, take a look for yourself!

Here's what was inside the first bag, given to me last Sunday evening at church.

Super Cute! And *exactly* what she needs!

Then, Wednesday night after we got home from church, my husband came to me and said: "Oh, Honey, Mrs. --- gave us a bag full of stuff. It's in the van." Check out what was in that bag!

There is easily a week's worth of food (we already used some!) and a couple months worth of cereal!!!

Then! After the boys were done with their slumber party shenanigans (post coming soon), Dan Jr. says to me: "Oh, yeah, MOM! Mrs. --- dropped this off for you!" Here's what was inside!!

There is still so much more inside, I only pulled out the first few things!

AND THEN! 

As I was putting all of these things away, I discovered some things that were given to me at my shower and after Gen was born, that I had put away for "later". Well, guess what?! It's later! lol!

2 of these were purchased for $2 each at our local thrift store....betcha can't spot 'em!

Isn't it amazing how the Lord provides for His children? He doesn't always do it with money, and He doesn't always do it exactly how or when we ask, but He ALWAYS does it!! 

I am grateful for far more than the tangible things that were in the bags, but what they represent.

I will praise Him for His provision, the thoughtfulness and generosity of our friends, the encouragement they were/are to me, and the love they have for us. 

"But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus." Phil 4:19

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." James 1:17

"Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall man give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again." Luke 6:38

Makin up for Lost Time, Part 4: First Day of School!

Thanks so much for your patience while I try to catch y'all up on the what's up with our family. It's probably a bit of a headache jumping around like this, but I have SO much I want to share with everyone! Keep hangin' in there! I have this post and one more, and we'll have completely caught up with all things Dolar Family & Academy.

With a new year, came a new schedule. One that was needed, but not one that I wasn't exactly looking forward to implementing. We were so used to having our super late nights and even later mornings, that jumping into a 6am wake up call didn't seem all that inviting. But, as mentioned, it was needed.

We've changed it up a little bit, because (at the last minute) we decided to not do Latin this year. But, other than that, we follow it pretty closely. 

This is a snapshot of our new schedule, as it is in my new planner.

Coming Soon: More about the planner is coming in the next/last "making up for lost time" blog post. 

Believe it or not, we're in our 4th week, and all but about 3 days have followed the schedule!

Someone please be proud of me!!! ;D

This was me on that first (very early) morning.

Shhhh! Don't tell anyone, but it's actually sorta nice to get things done before school starts. Not that I enjoy waking up that early, or anything. I just like the results. lol

After I had completed my early morning tasks & after everyone had been fed & dressed, it was time to get started! Here we are. Look at us. All happy, eager, willing and stuff. *sniff* Isn't it beautiful?! I just hope we look like this after the first few weeks! haha!

The black t-shirt & khaki pant matching thing was a happy accident. lol!

Here are some pics of the rest of our day.

Side note: If you want constant photos of our every day stuffs, follow me on Instagram! (Lissiegirl78) I post alllll the time. ;D

Math! We're currently using Math Mammoth (Grade 1) for Ben & Jo and Teaching Textbooks (finishing Grade 7 & moving on to Pre-Algebra!) for Dan jr.  I highly recommend both!

This year, I was determined to put the timelines on the wall. (we have one for Mystery of History & one for Apologia's General Science Dan & I tackled the project after all of his other subjects were done for the day. We had a major mess-up in our timeline that we didn't notice till we were DONE! hahah!! I felt so bad for Dan Jr, that I re-did the timeline for him. Poor kid, he'd worked for an hour! I wasn't going to make him do it all over again. I'm such a giving parent. ;D

 I put the photos of the mishap in reverse order in the collage. DOH! Ah well...it wouldn't be me if it was perfect. lol!!

And who wants to stay at the table all day?! Not us! We do our science (Apologia's Exploring Creation with Astronomy) reading & discussing on the couch & leave the seat work for the table.

All in all, our first couple weeks have been great! I was worried about all of the changes, but all have been for the better!! Can't wait to see what the Lord has for us the rest of the year.


Ps.

How could I forget to mention Genevieve?! lol!
She has been absolutely perfect in all the school hubbub. Even tho she sleeps through most of it, we enjoy having her with us during our school day. Love this kooky 'lil face.

Library Book Bags

A few months ago I decided that since we live within walking distance of the library, perhaps we should actually go to the library. I know, I know...what a novel idea! ha! It's one that I've considered a few times, but it was hard to get the kids interested. We have a bunch of books at home & I have loads on my tablet, so they really didn't get the point. But, after dragging taking them, and forcing helping them to check out a few books, the light bulb sorta went off in their heads, and we've been going faithfully (every 3 weeks) ever since. Now they can't seem to get enough! We enjoy our walk there, having our lunch and playing at the park & then browsing through the books. It's gone from something they dread, to something they anticipate with excitement!

The only downside: having to juggle the stroller and all the books on the walk home.

The solution: book bags!

That's simple enough, right? Um. Wrong. I have 3 boys. I can't just get them any ol' bag. Well, I guess they wouldn't really mind, but I wanted to get them something they'd actually like to carry around. I just couldn't find anything that fit the bill....and the budget.

Then, I thought to myself:  Why not make them?!

So, I did!

JoAnn's had a 50% off sale for the canvas material, the comic material was 25% off  & I had 2 50% off coupons!!! I was able to easily fit this project into our budget. Praise the Lord!!

Here are my Library Book Bags.

Please, let me know what you think! I'm considering selling them. I still have to practice a bit to get the stitching just right, but I think one or two more bags & I'll have them exactly the way I want them. Private message me via facebook if you are interested!

This is the first bag I completed. It's a bit off-center, and my stitching is a bit wonky, but all in all, I think it turned out great! It's Star Wars Comic, and exactly what Dan Jr. wanted. He loves it! That's really all that matters. <3

Here are all 3 bags. Ben has Retro Marvel Comic & Jo chose Retro Star Wars Comic. They are a HUGE hit with all 3 boys!

Don't let the size of these bags fool ya! They hold a TON of books! This was today's haul.

Ben's bag is the far L (can you tell he's not a big reader? lol!), Jo's stack is in the middle & Dan's is on the far R.

They love their bags! The whole walk to the library they were talking about all the different ways they can use them: sleepovers, road trips, piano lessons, and more! You should have heard them go on and on... they were so  excited to break them in!

I am so glad I was able to do this for them. It makes my heart so happy.

*sigh*

This really is the best job in the world.

The Easiest & Cheesiest Dinner Ever!

I'm sick!

Oh no!

Call the maid!

Call the substitute teacher!

And, for goodness sakes, call the chef, or all will surely perish!!!

Oh.

Wait.

I live in the real world.

haha!

Don't all mothers wish we could call in the subs on days like this? It would be so lovely to go to bed, hide under the covers, put a marathon on Netflix & just rest.

Aahhhhh...so nice.

But, again. Real. World.

The house still needed to be cleaned.

The schoolwork still had to get done.

And, the family had to eat.

Which brings me to the topic....dinner!

After a long day of dealing with being sick & homeschooling & making sure the boys didn't kill each other & keeping a clingy baby happy, the last thing in the Universe I wanted to do, was slave away in the kitchen all day. Often, Dan will make dinner, but he's been working so much overtime lately & I felt half dead well enough, I decided to let him hang out with the kids at the park, and throw something simple together for dinner. (aww...I'm such a good wife!)

Thank the Lord for pinterest!

I had found this meal a while ago, and had it in the menu to make it for dinner earlier in the week; but our plans had changed, so it got put on hold. Luckily, the ingredients were still fresh! I was able to give my family a delicious, from scratch meal, in under 30 mins & with hardly any effort.

Can I get an AMEN?!

The original recipe is from this blog (found via pinterest). I only tweaked it for our taste & family size. Below are the ingredients to feed a larger family. With a salad & bread, you could easily feed 8 hungry adults. We have a family of 5 hearty eaters, and we ate well over half, without any sides. (Don't judge! I'm sick, remember?) For a "normal" family size, just reduce to half.

One Pan Chicken Alfredo (aka Easiest, Cheesiest Dinner Ever!)

Ingredients:

5T Olive Oil (If you half it, use 3T, as per the original recipe.)
2c Chicken
2c Mushrooms (I added the mushrooms instead of doubling the chicken. They're not in the original recipe, but soooo good in this dish!)
1 Head of garlic. Just kidding! I used 4 cloves, but use enough to suit your families taste.
4c Chicken Broth
2c Heavy Cream (I'm sure whole milk will work, but the cream makes the dish so...creamy!)
1lb Penne Pasta
4c Parmesan Cheese
Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions are super easy:

1. Cook the chicken in the olive oil 'till just beginning to brown. It doesn't have to be all the way cooked yet.
2. Toss in the mushrooms & garlic and sautee for round about a minute.
3. Pour in the chicken broth & cream. Let it come to a boil.
4. When it begins to boil, throw in the pasta, lower the temp & let simmer for 15-20 minutes. (The recipe says to cover, but my pan is massive and doesn't have a lid. Mine was tender at 18 minutes)

5. Add the cheese!

Okay, so the recipe calls for "freshly shredded real parm cheese".

BWAHAHAHAHA!!!

Real. World.

Target & Walmart. BAM! Perfectly good cheese.

Seriously tho...freshly grated cheese...who has time for that?!?!?! I hardly have time to shower!!

Anyway, back to step 5. Add the cheese!

6. Add the salt & pepper to your taste. (You shouldn't need too much salt, due to the vast amounts of glorious cheese.)
7. Serve it up

It really is SO GOOD! And, SO EASY!

A meal you can cook in a jiffy, and apparently, half dead! Bonus!

So much thanks to the hubbs for taking the kids to the park so I could get a bit of quiet, to the kids for pickin' up my slack around the house, and to pinterest for another winning meal!

I must be sick to leave a stack of schoolwork on the table during dinner and in the photo. ha! 

Now, go!

Shut your interwebs portal off & spend some time with your loved ones.

It will all still be here in the morning.