Week #4 Review

Soooo.....this goal was not completed.  In fact, I didn't even last 24 hours on the detox program.  4pm rolled around on that first day and extreme lethargy paired with a pounding headache forced me to throw in the towel.  It was just too hard for me to take care of two little kids while feeling so bad...and knowing that I had to do it for two more days simply petrified me!  Yes, I am sure it would have become easier but I didn't have the gumption to make it through.


What I learned, gained, wanted to pass on, etc from this weekly goal:

• Be prepared as much as you can prior to starting the detox program.  Specifically, if you are a coffee drinker,  slowly start weaning off the caffeine a few days prior to starting (thank you to my BFF for this suggestion).  Cutting out that caffeine cold turkey was brutal!!!  Also, the program allows many salads and vegetable soups-do as much prep work for these meals before starting the program.  Making a salad is quite easy no??  Not so much when you have a raging headache and your body just wants to curl up on the couch.  Next time, I will have all my salad fixings chopped and ready to go before hand as well as a big batch of soup already made.
• Pick a time period when there isn't too much going on...maybe a long weekend?  I started on a Wednesday which is typically the busiest day of the week in our family-bad idea.  I thought it would be a good day to pick since we would be so busy I wouldn't have time to think about it....I was mistaken.  
• Don't be discouraged or beat yourself up if it doesn't happen the first time.  I was a-okay with my decision and think I made the best one for me and my family.  And I will most definitely be attempting this again.

My goal for week #5 will be posted later in the day!

Week #4-A Little House Cleaning....

For my goal this week, I have decided to do a simple body detox.  It's something I've been wanting to do for a while and I thought incorporating it as one of my weekly goals would be perfect.  


I asked around and looked online to find a program that would work for me.  I only wanted it to be a 3-4 day plan because I personally don't think I could do one longer than that.  I also wanted one that focused on food only and didn't require taking extra supplements.  I wanted this to be as natural as possible.  


After looking around for a while, I found one that I think will work and fits in with what I am looking for.   Check it out here: 


http://www.3day-detox.com/


I plan on doing this Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week.  I am nervous that it's going to be really hard and that I am going to become a crazy woman.....but, I am also excited to see how I feel afterwards.  It's only three days-I can do this!!!
Wish me luck!!!

Week #3 Review

Well, my house is not overflowing with free products but I did come out of this weekly goal with some coupons....and that works for me!  Here is how I made out:

• Tillamook: Had me sign up on their website to receive free coupons and also informed me that they sometimes offer coupons on their Facebook page.  
• Applegate Farms:  They are sending me coupons.
• Daves Killer Bread:  Had no coupons or freebies but suggested I check out Costco where loaves are cheaper (which I already do) and also suggested I visit their store if I am local (which I am) as there are great deals there.  I actually have been wanting to go to their store for a while so....
• PG (Tide):  The response I received back seemed very positive and enthusiastic...I thought for sure I would be getting something free...but nope, just more coupons.  
• GlaxoSmithKline (Sensodyne): Was again directed to visit their website for coupons.

What I learned, gained, wanted to pass on, etc from this weekly goal:
Perhaps it was the companies I chose, but receiving free products was not as easy as I was led to believe.   Coupons, yes.  But free stuff-nope.   Oh well, it was worth a shot and I am glad I at least asked!


I will be posting my goal for week #4 very soon!

Week #3-They Say Nothing in Life is Free-Ha!

I like to think I am a good shopper and try to find the best deals.  But in all honestly, I'm not.  I simply don't have the desire to scour websites, blogs, newspapers, etc for coupons.  Nor do I have the desire-or time really-to drive around to multiple stores getting the BOGO deal on deodorant.   I wish I had both the desire and the time because I truly think there is money to be saved.  While discussing this topic with another parent at my daughter's preschool, she shared a money saving strategy with me that I thought was right up my alley.   

Right after telling me how she has never paid for a tube of toothpaste, this parent told me she often emails companies and simply asks them for freebies or coupons.  I replied, somewhat surprised, "You just ask them...point blank?"  "Yep." she proudly replied.  Well, I could do that I thought...So in the name of saving money, here goes!

I decided to pick five companies to email and plead my case.  These are companies whose products I use on a regular basis and that I would really appreciate receiving some of their merchandise.  The companies I plan to email are:

• Daves Killer Bread
• Tillamook Cheese
• Applegate Farms
• Sensodyne (GlaxoSmithKline)
• Tide (P&G)

I don't think I would have ever thought to email companies directly for my own personal use.  I am definitely stepping out of my comfort zone by doing this!!!  Check back later in the week to see what products I did-or didn't-score!

Week #2 Review

Yay!  Week #2 is complete!  I made my list, purchased cards, wrote sweet notes inside, stamped / addressed, and stowed them in a safe place! Wow, feels great!  And oh ya, I also put calendar reminders in my gmail calendar to remind me when to mail the cards out....so really, I have no excuses this year.


What I learned, gained, want to pass on, etc from this weekly goal:
*What I gained from this goal was a peace of mind.  I am so awful at remembering birthdays and I always feel so bad when I forget.  Knowing that I have a plan in place to simply mail out a card for a loved one's special day provides me a sense of calm.
*I learned that if I just put a little more effort into it, I can be better organized!




All my cards-ready for the mail!!!

Check back soon to sew what I will be tackling in Week #3!

Week #2-Happy Birthday to You!...and You....and You...

My goal for week #2 was not one I came up with on my own...I'm pretty sure a friend in Facebook land did.  I am so thankful they did though because I am not sure this is one I would have thought of by myself-and I think it's a great one!

My goal for this week is to get all the family birthday cards done for the year.  This means purchasing all the cards, writing the sweet note inside, addressing and stamping.  To some, this may seem a tad ridiculous.  I mean, how hard can it be to send out birthday cards when it's the recipient's actual birthday? Well, call me birthday challenged.  I really stink at remembering birthdays and if I do happen to remember, it's a miracle a birthday card gets sent.  That being said, I am quite excited to complete this goal!


My plan (yes, I tend to have a "plan" for everything):
1) Make a list of everyone I need to buy for (and yes, part of the plans I make include lots of lists).  My family is not big but leave it to me to forget someone.  Sad, I know.
2) Purchase cards
3) Write sweet note, address, & stamp.
4) Find a safe place to store these cards.  And not too safe or I will just forget where they are.
5) Create calendar reminders to mail out the cards.  Because yes, it would not be surprising for me to complete steps 1-4 and then forget to mail them out.  Yep, this is a good goal for me.


Stay tuned for a review of Week #2....

Goal #1-Week in Review

This past week I tackled purging all of the processed foods living in our kitchen.  I went into this task thinking it would be quick and easy, I mean we really don't eat that many processed foods.  However, I was taken aback at the amount of food I ended up ditching...really quite scary actually.

Some of the items were obviously "bad" foods (cheese dip in a can-gross) but some foods, I was surprised-and a little sad-that I would have to find an alternate or just learn to live without.   Included in the latter-our favorite pickles, Claussen.  Also, A-1 Sauce and Tapatio.  Big bummer.  We use these quite often so I am currently on the lookout for some better versions-home made or store bought.  So, although my goal was to rid the entire house of processed foods, those items will be staying around until I can find a good alternate.  I have to be realistic about this all....


I took pictures of my pantry before and after the processed food cleanse....wasn't sure if I was going to share because I am horrified at the mess my pantry was in prior to cleaning it out...but whatever.  And I think the after picture makes up for it all!


Pantry prior to cleanse:

And after...isn't it pretty???

What I learned, gained, want to pass on, etc from this weekly goal:
*There is a lot more unnatural stuff out there than I realized.
*I am feeling a little overwhelmed with now trying to keep this stuff out of my house.
*I will need to do some research on finding some adequate substitues for some of our faves such as pickles and A-1 Sauce.
*It feels fantastic to have rid my home of all that!!!!


Check back soon for Week #2!

Here I Go....Week #1. Adios Processed Foods

In addition to conquering 52 goals this year, I also have one overall goal to become a more healthy human. I plan to accomplish this by returning to consistent exercise and watching much more closely what I put into my body.  The latter leads me to tackling my first weekly goal of the year:  Eliminating all processed foods from the house.


Luckily, my kitchen is not stocked full of processed foods...but there are some sneaking around that need to get the boot.  While I hate throwing food away, I just don't want these types of foods in our house anymore.  I want my family to be nourished by whole foods.  

I think the hardest part of this task will be having the other members of my household (husband, daughter (4), and son (2) be on board and okay with this change in our diet.  Sorry kidlets, no more frozen chicken nuggets for lunch!  For myself, I am very excited about doing this and looking forward to our venture into the whole foods only world!

Stay tuned at the end of the week with a status report for week #1!