A little less Loulou….. a lot happier

Last year when I was in Utah visiting my bff Natalie I made a horrifying discovery. I was fat. Ever since I was diagnosed with dysautonomia and my health went downhill I have basically let myself go. Being sick and not being able to do the things I used to do put me in a great big depression. I ate and ate and ate and ate. I didn’t weigh myself….Who cared what I weighed? I was sickly and in a funk. Bring on the chocolate. Bring on the fried chicken. Bring on eating 2 plates of food if I “needed” it. My realization came when I had to step on Nat’s scales to weigh by bag. Now let me preface by saying that I know this number isn’t what most people consider fat, but it is fat for me. It makes my BMI too high and is not considered a healthy weight for my frame and height. When I saw that I weighed 160 pounds I wanted to cry. My normal weight has always been anywhere from 130-140. I “normally” wear a size 4-6. I was piling out of my Ann Taylor loft size 10’s (which is a 12 in most other brands). I had fat hanging over all my pants, and I was miserable. I was ashamed, and I knew I was very unhealthy. When I got home and saw this picture I knew I had lost control. It’s not just how fat my face looked and the fact that I was sporting a double chin….Look how unhealthy I look….how bloated and yucky my skin looks…. ARGHHHHH. THIS is not Loulou.

I came home and planned for the big “change”. I started watching what I ate and was running. I assumed that the running would just make the weight fall off of me. Uh uh. It didn’t. I’m sure I got some health benefits before it made my heart go absolutely nuts, but it didn’t work a miracle. You can’t eat whatever you want and justify it by “running it off”.  I did lose about 10 pounds last spring and summer…. I actually lost 14 for about 10 minutes. Seriously. One time I weighed 146…for 10 minutes. I fluctuated between 148-150.  This is me last May after losing 10 pounds….. I could see some improvement but knew I still had a LONG way to go.

By Christmas I was back at 150-152 and stayed that way all winter. I was more comfortable in my 10’s but still feeling yucky all the time. I had a really bad time this winter with my health. I passed out while running downtown…. I had several bad episodes after that and actually passed out when I was home alone with the girls for the first time. It scared me to death.

This March I totally changed my outlook. I finally GOT it….what works for me, and it’s very simple. I started recording everything I ate and counting my calories. I use a program on my phone called Lose it! to hold myself accountable. Since March I have lost 15 more pounds for a grand total of 25 lbs. Since March I have gone from size 10’s to a 4 or 6.  That side of the weight loss is great and motivating, but I’ve noticed more important changes. My health is SO much better. It makes sense. I was putting so much unhealthy crap in my body that I couldn’t help but feel horrible. Now that I’m eating more lean meats and fresh fruits and veggies my body is functioning so much better. I haven’t passed out since late winter. I still have issues with my dysautonomia, but I’m able to control them much better. I still eat the things I love but in moderation. Sometimes I fall of the bandwagon, but I climb right back on. My weight these days fluctuates anywhere from 134-138. I don’t beat myself up over a few lbs., but when I start creeping towards the 138 I really start paying closer attention to my food intake. It usually takes a week or so of very healthy eating and 1170 calories per day to get back down. If I’m gonna have a day where I know I’m gonna eat a lot of bad stuff (like I did at Essie’s bday dinner) I try to make up for it the day before and after. It’s all about moderation. If I want lasagna at our favorite Italian restaurant like I did today I eat half. I eat just a few bites of the potatoes or pasta. I eat a spoon of rice and double up on my broccoli.  I eat Klondike Lite 100 calorie bars instead of ice cream. When I really crave sweet I eat an orange or some other kind of fruit. I have totally fallen in love with fruit! I could eat fruit all day! It’s the best “sweet” in the world, and with oranges being around 70 calories I can have one per day.

 

Since losing 25 lbs. I have gone from the chubby pictures above to this: THIS is me. This is the Loulou I’ve been missing. I know I’m no skinny stick by any means, but I am at a good healthy weight for me.

Last summer on a date with Andrew at around 150 lbs…..

This Easter at 136 lbs.

and us 2 weeks ago at the beach where I wore a bikini without freaking out…… I’m no supermodel, but I’m comfortable in my own skin.

I know I haven’t mentioned exercise….That’s because I haven’t been doing any. My body can’t handle more than one big change at a time. I lost the weight strictly from watching my calories. Now that I’m at my goal weight I’m going to SLOWLY start adding some exercise to tone all this business up….. S L O W L Y. I had a little boobjob  I mean surgery, almost 6 weeks ago. That was my gift to myself for losing all that weight and something I’ve wanted to do for years. There no shame in it…..I’m thrilled! Since I had the surgery though I have had to restrict myself from exercise and strenuous activities like vacuumming.  Dang! You know I’ve hated not being able to do that! Monday will be 6 weeks, and I’m going to start adding some physical activities in then. My dr. also redid my pacemaker scar, because it had weakened over the years. That bubba has hurt WAY more than the other!  It’s healing too though, so I won’t be afraid of hurting it….

I am SO happy these days. I found my self confidence again and with that came my self esteem. I am proud of myself, and I love feeling beautiful and sexy for my husband. I feel like I am MYSELF again. Weight can’t make my life fabulous or horrible, or happy or sad, BUT it does affect the way I feel about myself and how I live my life. I am now living the life I’m supposed to be living. Free of the pounds and the emotional weight I was carrying.  And you know what? IT FEELS GOOD.

love you guys,

A few before and afters.…..

This post is linked to the CSI Project- Paint challenge


There are more pictures of the finished room in the post below. Thanks for looking.



I realized that when I showed you the girls’ room redo that I didn’t show any before pictures. I went and looked for some, and guess what?? I didn’t really find any…. See Anne Pearce yawning? It’s because her room was SOOOOOO boring…..Besides a few pictures of the girls in their cribs this room didn’t inspire any pictures. You can see the boring paint by her white crib. If you look VERY closely you’ll see I did attempt a TINY bit of decorating in this room by hanging their name letters…. Yeah. I know. I outdid myself.

This is the wall where their bed now sits. It went from this:

To this: Major improvement huh?

Here is Essie’s side of the room before (that’s actually a much younger AP in her bed).

This side of the room now looks like this:

I found this before of the chest. It was previously in Hayden’s room. It was lookin’ kinda pitiful huh?

Now it looks like this:

this,

and this:

Sorry I can’t really pull up anymore Befores. I can assure that this room is such a happy place that there will be many more afters coming!

We have a couple of projects coming up this weekend including PVC pipe, spray paint, and drop cloths. Any guesses what we’re up to? I also have a thrift store chair and mirror that are dying for a little TLC. Check back next week for more of my little projects. Happy weekend!

2 princessas live here…

Redoing this bedroom for Anne Pearce and Essie was so much fun. When they were babies they had a FABULOUS nursery. We spent so much time making sure everything was perfect, and believe me it was! Then we moved. Last February. It has taken me this long to get their room like I dreamed it could be. When we moved in our house this room had vanilla colored walls. Their white cribs and accessories blended in, and it was BORING. Enter color. LOTS of color. I knew that I wanted this room to be bright and happy and GIRLY. My girls just came out of their cribs a couple of months ago. That gave me the motivation to get this room done. It started with this bed. My friend Tracy at White House Antiques had just redone this bed in aqua and distressed it. I fell in love with it at first sight…..and the price?? $175. I know. I know. You hate me. I had bought this bedding at TJ Maxx months and months ago. I had planned on using 2 twin beds and bought 2 sets. I ended up deciding that the girls would have much more room if they shared a bed. They sleep well together, so that worked out perfectly. Since this was a twin sized quilt (it was still BIG) I layered it over a white coverlet I already had. I love the look. See that cute little round ruffly pillow? I got it at the Pottery Barn outlet for $.94. Yep…… not even a dollar. It’s hard to see in this picture, but there’s a vinyl decal above their bed. The wall needed something, but I didn’t want anything that the girls could rip off the wall. If you’re interested I got it on Etsy from Hint of Chic Boutique. I chose In the Pink by Sherwin Williams accented with Great Green also by SW. The turquoise is just craft paint.

This is a close up of their decal. I think it’s perfect.

This is to the left of the bed on the other side of the window. I painted all these frames I also got for a steal at White House Antiques and glazed them for an antique look. The Giggle sign and chair were in their nursery. See the butterflies hanging in the corner?? They are a Fairhope find. The girls love them. That’s another one of those $.94 pillows from PB.

Close up of the mismatched frames.

Like my custom window treatments? They’re $4 white twin sheets from Walmart paired with a cheap rolling shade from Home Depot. We need the shade to keep that bright sunshine out. To give them some pop I hot glued some ribbon to the bottom edge.

This alcove is to the left of the door. This is our kitchen area….This is where our babies get fed and thrown all over the place ;). Their PB kitchen goes perfectly in this area. I’ve let Santa know that they REALLY need the matching pie safe for Christmas…We’ll just have to see.. ;)

Another shot of the headboard and bedding

I needed the perfect piece to rest inside this HUGE 22 x 24” frame. I found this vintagey metal plaque at Hobby Lobby. I tied ribbon through the wall hangers on the back and voila’.

Here’s a closeup….The colors and fonts are just what I wanted and goes with the shabby chicy antiquey Frenchy kinda vibe I have going on. BTW, I know those words don’t exist in the real world, but they do exist in mine. ;)

This dresser is one of my favorite projects from this room. I have before and after pics that I’ll show later, and you’re not gonna believe it. I painted it in the accent color I chose (Great Green by SW), and glazed over it with Ralph Lauren smoke getting it in all the nooks and crannies. Then I modpodged scrapbook paper on the drawer fronts, glazed them, and sealed it with protective spray. This piece is gorgeous in person. I love the imperfections of the paper placement and the mismatched knobs.

Here’s a straight on view of the big gull bed, as the girls call it. They’ve had so much fun in this room and are so proud of it. As soon as anyone walks in the house they can’t wait to show it off. I think my mama has had to look at it 114 times. If you have any questions about anything in the room just leave me a comment. I would be happy to fill you in. Now I have to go pick up those girls from preschool knowing FULL well that this room will look like 2 little tornadoes went through it in less than 60 seconds. At least I have these pictures if I want to look at it in decent shape. Thanks for looking.

I'm linking this to:
Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Friday. It's my favorite PARTAY!

to blog or not to blog…..that is the question.

I enjoy reading blogs and visiting a party here and there. It does seem to me that now parties are EVERYWHERE......I started blogging years ago when we were adopting our first daughter from Guatemala. I blogged to share my thoughts and feelings. I invited people into my life and made tons of lifelong friends. That in itself was enough for me. It seems now that blogging has turned into an industry. Who has the most hits? Who's most popular? Who has the best party?? Sorry. It's just the way I feel. I miss the old blogging world when people blogged just to blog..... To freely share their inspirations, ideas, and lives without trying to make a business out of it. I'm sure I'll get blasted for this, but it IS the way I feel. I do appreciate those that go to all the work to put on these shindigs....My blog is not my life or my business though. It’s just a fun little outlet to use here and there….Am I the only one who feels this way?  All the advertising has almost turned me off from the blogging world. I have plenty of projects that I’ve completed but not blogged about….. I can’t decide if I want to go in that direction or keep this blog the way it was first intended…a little snapshot into my crazy life. I’m sure that all of my readers and followers have gone on their merry way, as it’s been so long since I blogged. If anyone is still here I’d give you a high 5 if I could reach through this screen….. Instead I’ll share some recent pictures. After all, these are the best projects I’ve ever worked on!

does anyone need some bakelite?

Hello all my DIY buddies. I’m redoing a chest for my girlies room, and I have 10 vintage bakelite pulls. They are originals…not reproductions. 9 are in excellent condition, and one has a chip. Please leave me a comment if you want them. I’ll sell all of them for $20 + $5 for shipping.

just call me a sewin’ fool!

Wow! I didn’t mean to take such a long hiatus! 2 and a half months!! What a bad blogger I am. I have had a tough time with my health for the last couple of months and haven’t really been doing anything housey. In the time that I do have I’ve been working on my girls’ spring and summer wardrobes. I still have a way to go, but at least I’ve made SOME progress….. Please remember that I have to make TWO of everything! It takes a lot of time, but the end product is always worth it. I love that my girls aren’t “cookie cutters”. They never have on the same thing as other kiddos. I like that they have their own little looks. Sewing isn’t as hard as it looks. I’ve learned to love and enjoy it. Fabric can be expensive but by waiting for sales and coupons I save TONS of money. I could never afford to buy these things in a store! Things like I make can cost around $100 in a boutique! If you shop wisely for fabrics like I do you can make most of these outfits for around $10 or so. You can make a pair of ruffled pants or capris for under $5! I buy all my tshirts to embellish/monogram at Target for $5 each. That's $10 for a complete boutique style outfit!!! I have spent many hours finding patterns that are both adorable and easy. I will be sharing the patterns and fabrics I used in the outfits below. If you ever have any sewing questions please feel free to contact me. I would be happy to help you in any way I can!

My hands down favorite source for all patterns is FairyTale Frocks and Lollipops. Terri has the BEST selection of children’s patterns I’ve ever seen, and she’s also getting in tons of GORGEOUS fabrics. Check her out!

I LOVE downloadable patterns…It’s so much easier to cut out each individual size than tracing over all that tissue paper. I used the Betsy/Joey sewing pattern for these ruffled shorts. They’re super easy and come in 3 lengths. You can make them with or without ruffles. These are perfect for boys and girls. This fabric is Jennifer Paganelli’s Casey Scroll. It’s getting harder to find, but several sellers on etsy still carry it. It’s one of my all time faves.

I cut out one of the designs from the fabric and appliqued it to the shirt….. I’m going to do a tutorial soon on embellishing tshirts.

Close up of the short:

I fell in LOVE with this fabric from Michael Miller when I first saw it last fall. It’s called Plain Jane and comes in several colorways. This aqua/red/white is my favorite. I used my friend Aimee’s boutique bottoms pattern. They are by far my all time favorite pattern. I use them for everything….ruffled pants, cuffed pants, gauchos, pajama pants…you can also use them to make shorts. Her patterns are all created with the beginner in mind, and she walks you step by step through the pattern. She even makes ruffles easy! I appliqued this shirt too and love the way it turned out!

Here are the same boutique bottoms paired with this tie shoulder top by Indygo Junction. This pattern also includes a pattern for shorts and capris.

Close up of the shoulder tie. The fabric ties are so much easier to use than the typical ribbon ties. They stay tied!

This is some patchwork fabric I found last year at Hobby Lobby. I typically only use designer fabrics, because they wash and wear so much better. The colors also stay truer after many washes. I loved the look of this though, and I took a chance! I used PortabelloPixie ruffled pants pattern. These are the single ruffled capris. This pant is more fitted and tends to run a little small.

I used Lava Flowers by Michael Miller for the short and pod posey for the ruffles on this pair of Betsy/Joey shorts. I’m thinking I’m gonna monogram this shirt in lime green ;)

This may just be my favorite. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Heather Bailey’s Pop Garden line. The lime greens, pinks, greens, and yellows in this fabric just scream SPRING. I love how the stripe coordinates perfectly with the paisley. If you look closely you will see that this paisley is made up of all kinds of flowers. This is another example of the Indygo Junction top and Boutique Bottoms like I showed above.

Some of my favorite places for fabric are:

fabric.com

Fabricworm on Etsy

Craftersvision.com

There are SO many sellers on Etsy. If you find a fabric you like just do a search.

Mamas, get out that sewing machine you have shoved in a closet, buy a couple of beginner patterns, and get started! You’ll be amazed how easy it is and the feeling of accomplishment you get from all those people who will stop you on the street and compliment your children’s clothes…… That’s when you get to say, “Thanks. I made it myself!” ;) Be prepared for all the oooohhhhh’s and aaaahhhhh’s that follow!

Happy Sewing!

Linking to:

Rhoda's Thrifty Party

Metamorphosis Monday