Bwildered

2013: The Year of Organization

2013-01-06T15:58:00.001-08:00

I love to organize. LOVE. And sometimes I really good at it. But I find myself little pockets of space in my life that are complete disasters. For instance, my office/craft/I-don't-know-what-to-do-with-this-throw-it-in-there-and-close-the-door room. Awful. It's a complete embarrassment. So one of my goals for 2013 is to be more organized. Like ridiculously, annoyingly organized. I'm finding lots of good ideas on Pinterest and I'm slowly but surely making lists and implementing ideas. Here's two I'm starting with.

Cleaning Schedule
The first idea I started with I found on Pinterest. I actually created my own list and started using it in November of 2012. And then Christmas and 3 weeks of sickness hit and I stopped doing it. But the weeks I did do it I really loved it.

Here's why it works: I felt like I was accomplishing something important every day and my house looked better and I just felt better! Also, with the swing day I was tackling one big thing that really did need to be done at least once a month but I never seemed to find the time for it.

Challenges: Make sure you have what you need for your cleaning. And for the daily chores it might take you a few days to figure out the best way to tackle them. For me, I enlisted the help of Jackson for bed making (starting him early!) and then tried to tackle the dishes and counters while he was eating breakfast. I found that the chore of the day I usually had to wait until my hubby got home. And I didn't even think about doing the night chores until everyone else was in bed.

30 Bags in 30 Days
I've seen a version of this on Pinterest but decided to definitely go for it when I saw Bekah over at Country Mouse tales posting pictures of her bags on Instagram! Such a great idea and really quite easy! I referenced Bekah's list and then set about creating my own. My list will start today and runs for 30 days, so that puts me at February 5th, which is PERFECT because The Boy's 3rd birthday party is just a few days after that!

Here are a couple of other ideas I'm going to be tackling this year:

1. Setting up a household binder. I have seriously been trying to do this for TWO years.

2. Back to couponing and saving money!

3. Organize all my digital files.

4. Create my own cleaning products.

5. Create a menu planning board

6. Follow the Declutter Calendar by My Simpler Life. Again, some of this maybe overlapping but I want to make sure I don't miss a thing!!

7. Organize all finances/billing.

So there's my plan to a simpler, more organized life. Check out my OCD (yes) and Make My Life Easier boards for inspiration of your own! How are organizing your life? I would love to hear your ideas!

The Mommy Curse

2012-11-01T12:08:00.000-07:00

I love being a mom. I love having this little bundle of non-stop energy that just wants to run and play all day. I love seeing the world through his eyes and rediscovering it all again. I love the little phrases that he suddenly comes up with. I love that when he is tired or hurt he wants to "hold you me." That when he wants me to rock him he asks me to dance. That without fail, every single morning, he crawls into bed with me to snuggle up against me and go back to sleep. I love it all but one single part. The Guilt.

That's right, I capitalized Guilt. Because seriously it is like no other thing I have experienced. And I feel like as a mom you feel guilty over so many things. Was I too hard on him or not hard enough? Do I push him or let him figure it out? Why did I have to lose my temper? Why DIDN'T I get mad? On and on and on.

Today was a particularly hard day of Mommy Guilt because when I drop the Boy off at his preschool he was sobbing. He didn't want to go. He wouldn't tell me why. He was just clinging to me and refusing to let go. So as I drove away good 'ol Mommy Guilt reared her head and started in. Maybe I should have left him, maybe I should have left quicker, what if something is really wrong, what if I'm not pushing him enough. UGH. The farther I got from him the worse I felt. So by the time I actually got to work I was in full tears. Just the way I like to start my day.

But then I started getting mad. Because really no one is doing this to me but myself. I know I'm not a bad mom. I'm not perfect but I try really hard. He is a happy, healthy boy who has many good people in his life and feels the love of them all. He goes to bed with a full belly and wakes up knowing momma will be there. While being a working mom has definitely made things a bit harder at times, in my opinion it has made me better. Being fulfilled in all aspects of my life makes me well rounded as a person and as a mom. I appreciate the days of fun that we have knowing that I will have to be away from him the next day. And despite today's sobbing I know it is good for him too. While I would love for him to forever be my baby I know that isn't possible. I know that this is just the beginning of his stretching and growing. I know he won't look back on these days and think what a crappy mom I was.

So here's the lesson I'm teaching myself in hopes that one day I can pass it along to my son. Give yourself a break. Do your very best. Put your best foot forward. Know some days you will fail and others you will thrive. But most of all, let go of the guilt. Or at least try to.

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Jackson, 19 Months

2011-10-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my awesome business partner at Life's Little Blessings for this amazing photos! I love them so much Nicole!!

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https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lifes-Little-Blessings-Photography/104127226309523

30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 13

2011-08-13T22:37:00.000-07:00

From a Distance
So this is my interpretation. Because we are MOVING. And these boxes? They are GOING THE DISTANCE. Of 25 miles. :-)

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30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 12

2011-08-12T22:30:00.000-07:00

Close Up
Can you guess what this is? It's the wreath I had my sister make out of balloons for the Boy's birthday!!

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30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 11

2011-08-11T22:27:00.000-07:00

Something Fun

Bubble Tea! Sugar-free vanilla! Yummo!

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30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 10

2011-08-10T22:25:00.000-07:00

Something I Made
Earring by Bwildered!

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30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 9

2011-08-09T22:21:00.000-07:00

Faceless Self Portrait.

The way I like to end my night.

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30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 8

2011-08-08T20:10:00.001-07:00

Technology
Can't wait to try this out!

30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 7

2011-08-07T20:07:00.000-07:00

Something New
Love my new shoes! (in the spirit of full disclosure I did take this picture a day late due to a family emergency)

30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 6

2011-08-06T19:58:00.000-07:00

Childhood Memory
My grandpa built the bookcase for me when I was a kid. It has always been one of my most prized possessions.

30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 5

2011-08-05T16:15:00.000-07:00

Someone I Love
My dad has been gone for a month and while we all missed him I think someone missed his Ba Ba the most. To see my boy love my dad as much as I do makes me a little weepy.

Photo Challenge-Day 4

2011-08-04T23:29:00.000-07:00

Favorite Color

Pretty much obsessed with purple, glitter and nail polish right now. Perfect.

Photo Challenge-Day 3

2011-08-03T23:23:00.000-07:00

Clouds.

Well of COURSE there were no clouds yesterday. Nothing blue skies. So I'm recycling a photo I took at the beginning of the summer.

Photo Challenge-Day 2

2011-08-02T23:13:00.000-07:00

What I Wore

Do you know how hard it is to get a cute picture in a sweatshirt? But what I wore was REALLY important but August 2nd marks the day that my Uncle Darrell starts his 40 day BIKE RIDE (as in pedal, not motor) from Santa Clara, CA to the Brooklyn Bridge. He is doing this all in honor of the 343 firefighters that died on 9/11. Soak that in for a second. Then head over to Bay2Brooklyn to check out where they are and what they are doing. Because it is awesome sauce.

Photo Challenge-Day 1

2011-08-01T22:18:00.000-07:00

So I'm going to be posting these pictures either at night or the next day but I am taking them everyday! You should join me! Take the 30 Day Photo Challenge from Oh So Lovely!

30 Day Photo Challenge

2011-07-31T11:35:00.000-07:00

So I totally didn't make my writing for 30 days happen, but maybe I can do this! You know I love to take a photo!

I'm joining 30 Day Photo Challenge from Oh So Lovely (thanks Amy for turning me on to this!). I think it will be fun to have something assigned I have to take a picture of besides my 10,000 pictures a day of my kid. I'm going to do some on my phone and some on my camera. Just whatever moves me!

I'm excited to do this and I think you should join in (I'm looking at you Michelle)! If you want to join make a comment here and at Oh So Lovely.

The Best Laid Plans

2011-05-16T21:38:00.000-07:00

Well all my good intentions having been derailed by a sick toddler. Who kept me up until 3, snotted and hung on my leg all day and is definitely going to be doing the same tonight and tomorrow. I'll be back when we are healthy!

Jump on the Bandwagon: My Fitness Pal

2011-05-14T10:11:00.000-07:00

Do you remember when I did this series before? It's been FOREVER. My 30 days of blogging is the perfect time to share with you a few of my favorite things! Let's start with MyFitnessPal.com!

I mentioned in my post a few days ago that I was using MFP as a way to track all my food and exercise. I was turned onto this site by my pal Becky. And thank goodness! I love it! It is such an easy way to track what you are doing. The data base for food is so extensive it is very rare that I search for anything that I don't find.

My favorite feature about MFP is on your home page, right at the top it shows you exactly what your calories are. What you have used and what is left. I also really like the fact that it just adds my exercise calories right in so I can really see how many I should be eating for each day. And the community is AMAZING. When I first started I spent so much time on the community boards getting encouragement and questions answered. I don't spent quite as much time there now but I still love to go and look at others success stories.

They also have features for printing out reports , figuring out your BMI and BMR and even allows you to create badges (take a gander right down there on the right!) There are apps for Andriod, Iphone and Blackberry which for me makes keeping track of everything all the easier.

By far this has been a huge factor in helping me get on track and figure out what I need to do! And it is ALL FREE. I know. I can't believe it either. I would recommend this website and app to anyone who is trying to lose, gain or maintain their weight. Since I have started using it I have turned at least 4 other people on to using it too!

Today's Motto

2011-05-13T09:54:00.000-07:00

Taken from West Willow Etsy Shop.

I think I will. Have a great weekend!

Musical Love

2011-05-11T22:34:00.000-07:00

I love music. I feel like its in me. Flowing through my veins. I'm a crappy singer but music for me is the ultimate way to feel. It moves me, shakes me, inspires me. Here's a few of my favorites right now.

Jar of Hearts by Christina Perri
I realize that this song is kind of depressing to some people but I LOVE it. I don't see it that way. I think it is empowering. Every time it comes on my IPod I play it over and over. Her voice haunts me. Christina Perri just came out with a CD on Tuesday and I'm getting it ASAP. Also, can have her amazingly awesome hair? Think I could rock it?

Firework by Katy Perry
When I first heard this song I cried. I needed it at the exact moment I heard it. And it has stuck with me. It's on my workout playlist, it is the ringtone on my phone. Even the Boy knows it now. Everytime he hears this song he runs to my phone. BOOM! BOOM! EVEN BRIGHTER THAN THE MOON! It's always been inside of you! Just listening to now makes me want to get up and dance and scream it out at the top of my lungs.

Perfect by Pink
Okay so there is a curse word in that one, but I'm ignoring it. You're so mean when you talk about yourself, you are wrong. Change the voices in your head, make them like you instead. AGH! How can you NOT love a song that says that? I think about the Boy too and I think, PLEASE, PLEASE know how special and amazing you are! LOVE this song.

Coming Home by Diddy featuring Skylar Gray
Oh COME ON. You know you've got a little Diddy in your rotation. Look, I have no excuse. I just like it.

Rolling in the Deep by Adele
This girl can wail. She sings with such force it amazes me. I fell in love with her back with Chasing Pavements and the love affair just continues. Her new album is UH-MAZ-ING. You need it now. I'm not kidding. Her voice is so raspy and has such an old quality to it. Love, love, love.

So there's a few of my current favorites! What are you listening to these days?

Incredible Shrinking Bree

2011-05-11T10:09:00.000-07:00

I've talked about weight a few times on this blog. It's something I have struggled with my entire life. I have always had to work at keeping it in a healthy range. I made a choice at the end of last year that I needed to make 2011 the year of Bree. The time to work not only my physical self, but my emotional and mental self too. And I've done it. I've really focused on what I need to do for myself since January.

The biggest part of this has been the physical part. I started in January with a Biggest Loser challenge. It was 12 weeks long. The first week I lost 6 pounds. Which as exciting as that was just really showed me how truly crappy I was eating and how I wasn't moving at all! It was a great way to start this off. It really helped me get focused. I began tracking all my food and exercise on MyFitnessPal (aka BEST website ever). I also started with Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. When I started it I thought I might die. It was so hard. But by the end of that 30 days I was flying through the workouts, doing double workout days and ENJOYING it. I lost 20 pounds in 12 weeks which brought me right through the month of March.

I lost an additional 6 pounds in April. I was working out (30 Day Slimdown which uses Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, Banish Fat Boost Metabolism and No More Trouble Zones-Yes, I'm a bit in love with her.) and still watching what I was eating. I had all my MFP friends cheering me on and two of my best girlfriends working at it with me. The support from my friends and family has been absolutely amazing. I couldn't have even got started without them. Especially Becky and Shari. They kept me accountable and kept me going.

I don't know what has actually made it stick this time other than I was just really, really tired of me. I was tired of being tired. Tired of being uncomfortable in my own skin. I hated the way I looked, hated the clothes I wore (and there were very, very few) and I never, ever looked in the mirror if I could avoid it. I just felt like a big blog of yuck and I knew that I had to make a change. I also knew that I wanted to keep up with the Boy and that kid has more energy than a barrel of monkeys. I couldn't keep up with him in the state that I was. I had to make a change. So I did.

This hasn't been an easy journey but honestly it hasn't been as hard as I thought. And I don't know if that is because I just haven't given myself any other options then to just do it or what. Or maybe I was really ready for it. But everyday I wake up and plan my day from the workout on. And everything I eat is accounted for. And I feel good. I feel GREAT.

I went to a family wedding 2 weeks ago. Most of the family hadn't seen me since the beginning of March. That weekend I felt like a rockstar. Everyone had something sweet and encouraging to say. I think nearly every single person said when they saw me, "You look amazing!" I was flying high. And I FELT amazing. It was the first time since January that I took some pictures and just stepped back from them and really saw what I had done.

I still have a ways to go. My journey isn't over. But this is a lifestyle for me now. I can't imagine being any other way. Food is fuel and while I enjoy it I don't ever want to use it as a crutch again. And moving my body and stretching it is a must. I want to stay strong and youthful as long as I can and this is the way to do it!

I have some really embarrassing photos I'm taking along the way that I'm not quite ready to share with you but here is just a sneak peak of what 28 lighter looks like from the waist up (Forgive the crappy phone photos!) Hello SINGLE chin!

Mobster

2011-05-10T12:12:00.000-07:00

I really have the cutest kid. No really.

I mean look at that face?! ADORABLE.

This one is my favorite. He looks like an old school mobster. We should call him Jacky the Knife or something.

His little neck SLAYS me. What is it about the little neck? I want to nom on it.

Yup, definitely the cutest kid ever.

101 in 1001 Update!

2011-05-09T11:01:00.000-07:00

Back in January I wrote my 101 in 1001 list. I even added it as a page so you guys can keep tabs on how I am doing. Not so great so far. BUT I'm about to jump on a couple of these things so we are going to get moving!

So far I have completed:
-Don't eat out for two weeks.
-Complete the Biggest Loser Program (Lost 20 pounds in 12 weeks! I'm going to tell you guys all about my journey I'm on soon!)
-Drink 8 glasses of water a day for 3 weeks. (I actually drink 10 glasses a day now!)
-No fast food for 2 months. (I'm actually in the midst of another challenge right now that is no fast food for a month!)

What I'm currently working on:
-Make 5 homemade gifts and send them to friends (Three down, two to go! And I have finally figured out what they are going to be!)
-Make 50 new recipes (20 out of 50 so far. This is actually really easy for me because I love to cook and I love to try new recipes).
-Attend church 3 times a week (My hubby works every Sunday so this has been a hard one. But I think we have finally figured it out. Since his work is 5 minutes from my parents church he actually meets me there on his lunch hour!)
-Workout 6 days a week for one month (This one has been hard because I'll get to that 4th week and then I will have to go out of town or something! But I'm starting Insanity [SO SCARED!] today so that is a 60 day program for 6 days a week and I WILL DO IT.)
-Create my ideal body within 12 months (I want to change this to HEALTH instead of body. Now that I'm on this journey I find that while I DO care about the way my body looks I'm much more concerned with my health. Which has vastly improved.)
-Blog everyday for a month (Day 7!)
-Leave Jackson overnight 3 times (HARD. One, because I miss him and two, this requires us to spend money we don't really have. Must work on this one harder though.)
-Have dinner once a month with family (I want to change this one too. I want it to be have family OVER for dinner once a month. We are pretty good about having dinner with our families but not so good about inviting people over.)
-Buy flowers once a month for my house (I love this one. Fresh flowers are such a day brightener.)

So I haven't TOUCHED my Photography, The Boy, Life Necessities, Giving, Pampered Chef, or Organization categories. My goal is to get at least one going in each area by the end of June. I would like to complete at least one goal a month, but I'm going to have to be more diligent about it if I want to do that. Which goals do you think I should start working on next? How are your goals for this year going?

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T09:56:00.000-07:00

I remember my mother's prayers and they have always followed me.

They have clung to me all my life.

Abraham Lincoln

Happy Mother's day to best mother ever. The one who inspires me to be a better wife, mother and friend daily. I love you!