Well I have been so jazzed to share my work-from-home secrets, I have been keeping the two most adorable kiddos from my great readers.  I know–how could I do this to you?!

His new "look" which is melting my heart!!

Surprise!!!

Dressed for church.

Hanging out in the nursery.

I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season.  Jackson is TOTALLY INTO CHRISTMAS for the first time, so I would love to hear some great ideas for teaching kids about the meaning of Christmas.  What traditions do you have for Christmas?

© 2011, Amy. All rights reserved.

My husband and I arrived in New England yesterday after a family roadtrip from North Carolina.  Today I sat in my father-in-law’s living room watching the snow fall over the frozen bay with a warm fire next to me.  Cozy memories, with my babies and a sweet husband within arm’s reach make life feel pretty awesome right about now.

I haven’t really seen my keyboard and rarely know where my iPhone is when I’m on vacation (which is pretty rare for me!), but I’ve decided to take a little bit of a break from the virtual world.  It feels restorative and will give me fuel for blogging in the New Year!

Have a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year! 

See you in 2011!!

© 2010, Amy. All rights reserved.

Last week, I hopped on the scale and found that instead of moving toward my goal of getting to my pre-baby weight before Christmas–36 pounds down and 4 to go–I was actually sliding in the other direction.

It’s disappointing to not get to your goal in the time you expected, but it’s daunting to be away from that goal and know there are many opportunities to continue sliding in the coming weeks.

We will be traveling for two days, which means less healthy choices on the road and a couple days before I can go to the grocery.  Then we’ll be enjoying the holidays with family and friends, which means hot chocolate, sugar cookies and calamari (I know that doesn’t exactly match the theme, but I’m the most excited for calamari:)!

If you get the impression from my blog that I have amazing will power and discipline–think again!!  If I’m within hand’s reach of a bowl of yummy M&Ms–watch out–because they will disappear.

But I am self-aware enough to know that I don’t have amazing discipline, so I have to plan for success in order to achieve it.  Not planning for the holidays would lead to two weeks of indulging that would make me feel disappointed and much further away from my goal.  So last week I came up with a plan to stay on track, without feeling deprived.

Here’s the plan of attack:

1.  Identify what motivates you

On a very basic level people are motivated by pleasure or pain. Finding exactly what motivates you will be a very powerful tool in goal achievement.

After many years, I finally realized one of my major motivators for achieving my goals:  potential embarrassment. Ha!  Not sure exactly what that says about me, but I know can be a strong force in getting me to success.  So why not use this to my advantage?!

To leverage this motivator, I decided to rejoin Weight Watchers last week.  (A few months ago I joined, lost 14 pounds, then stopped. Haven’t lost a pound since I left.)

I don’t stay for the meetings, but I do benefit from the weekly weight in. It is the potential embarrassment of someone seeing me NOT reach my goal on the scale that strongly motivates me to stay on track throughout the week.

So if you are trying to get to a goal, seriously ponder what has motivated you in the past.

Some people have tried putting pictures of fit people on their fridge or having an accountability partner.  Find what does work for you and you will be more apt to stay on track.

2.  Limit your options.

While I may reach for the bowl of mint M&Ms, I know better than to buy a few bags myself. Allow yourself some amazing holiday treats, the ones you look forward to all year, but make an effort to limit the options that will send you far away from your goal.

For me, that means bringing healthy snacks in the car and buying groceries once we arrive so that we won’t be tempted to eat out for days.

Like I said, it doesn’t mean that I won’t eat any peanut brittle–just that I won’t be buying it.

3. Set realistic exercise goals

Will you catch me running outside in New England in the freezing cold or joining buying a temporary pass for a gym?

Probably not!

That doesn’t mean the sneakers have to be shelved completely!

Will I set aside 10 minutes a few times a week to knock out a couples tabatas?

Yes!

It is very easy to do this four minute workout.  I will bring my jump rope and possibly medicine ball to knock out some workouts over the holidays. I wrote about the tabata here and was interviewed about the tabata here.

Now it’s time to take action!

How are you going to stay on track this year?  Have you mapped out a plan to start the New Year off on the right foot?

I’d love to hear your ideas in the comment section below.

© 2010, Amy. All rights reserved.

Oh friends, this is the most wonderful time of the year! I patiently waited until the day after Thanksgiving to really “throw” myself into the spirit of Christmas! One holiday at a time, right?

Anyway, I can’t believe it’s around the corner. Did it sneak up on you, too?? Since we’ve been pretty busy, I’m remembering some of my favorite things about the holidays.

Like my favorite Christmas movie

My favorite Christmas network

One of my favorite Christmas songs

Finally, I can’t wait to share our family traditions with our newest member

What are you looking forward to this holiday season?

© 2010, Amy. All rights reserved.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!! We had a blast! It involved an “Everest” marathon on t.v., playing with the kids and eating great food that I only had to heat. SCORE!!!

It is so hard for me to believe that people get up so early and brave the masses for Black Friday shopping. Our Kohl’s opens at 3 A.M. YIKES!!

Yours truly will NOT be braving the crowds–I don’t really like crowds–especially shoppers determined to get the best sales. No thanks!!

I plan on doing most, if not all, of my shopping online. Here are just some of the bargains I’ve spotted:

Old Navy is offering jeans for $15 and 50% off all outer wear, both online and in stores on Black Friday.

My friend, Tricia, has the most adorable Etsy shop “Sweeter than Sweets” and is offering 10% off all items. Coupon code:black friday

Target is offering online Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. From free shipping to gift card giveaways–they seem busy!

$10 free gift card with a $100 Barnes and Noble gift card purchase.

50% off 1 Kids or Teen Book Set- Enter Coupon code W4A4B4Y -offer expires 11.30.2010 Barnes and Noble

SkinCareRx Cyber Monday Sale! Save 25% Site Wide One Day Only. Use Code: CYBER25.

The Gap is offering 20% off online sales and loads of other discounts.

Have you spotted any great deals online? For those of us who like to shop from home–we’d love to get the scoop!

© 2010, Amy. All rights reserved.