Biggest Loser Competition

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hungry

A dark tiled room as a background

I am hosting a Virtual Biggest Loser Competition. Everyone who wants to enter will put in $10 via PayPal, then the two people who lose the most percentage of weight in five weeks will split the money.

Here are the details:

  1. It will be on the honor system (so, honest people only, please 🙂 ).
  2. To enter, send $10 to my PayPal Account by Monday, January 11.
  3. Personally record your starting weight on Monday, January 11.
  4. I will post how many people entered the competition on Tuesday, January 12, meaning you’ll find out how much you could potentially win-giving you the motivation you need to lose!
  5. Personally record your ending weight on Monday, February 15.
  6. Calculate your weight loss percentage by dividing the number of pounds you have lost by your beginning weight, and then multiplying this number by 100. For instance, if your starting body weight was 200 pounds and your present weight is 180 pounds, subtract 180 from 200 to get the total sum of pounds lost, which in this case is 20 pounds. Now divide 20 by 200 to get the 0.1. Then multiply 0.1 by 100 to alter it to a percentage, which in this case is 10%.
  7. Email me your percentage by Wednesday, February 17.
  8. I will announce the top two winners on Thursday, February 18.
  9. Winners will receive their money by Friday, February 19 through PayPal.

 

 

Sound easy enough? Well, the weight loss might not be so easy, but the competition will be! Make sure to share with those who may be interested because the more people we get involved, the bigger the winnings, and the bigger the motivation!

Let the games begin! Send me your money by next Monday and let me know if you have any questions.

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And the winner is…

Congrats to Megan Hess! She won the Lolly & Pop giveaway! Thanks for entering, everyone, and don’t forget to check out Lolly & Pop’s store for some adorable hair clips and bows!

 

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11th Day of Christmas: Christmas Outfit Linkup

Like I’ve said before, I really love dressing up for Christmas. I think it’s because you can get by with wearing sequins, leather, and sparkles much easier. So, obviously, we dressed up in our Christmas Best on Sunday. I wore a gold sparkly sweater (fun fact: I got that sweater at JCP at the end of the season for like $2 so I bought one in three other colors!) with a textured black skirt, my wedges, and a green statement necklace. Eva wore a sparkly red dress, and TJ wore a Christmas skinny tie with a red sweater and blue blazer. Finny Babe was wearing a cute button-up but slept through pics, so we did classic gang only pictures. To make up for it, I took a picture of him in his cute “Santa’s Favorite” onesie and little red mocs which remind me of elf shoes.

I can’t believe Christmas is right around the corner. I’m so ready, but don’t want it to be over because January and February are the wo0o0orst!

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Make sure to check out Danica’s blog for her final Christmas outfit linkup! It’s been fun!

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10th Day of Christmas: Longfellow’s Christmas

This is my ultimate favorite Christmas video. The story is such powerful, Ed Herrman does such a great job narrating (I can’t believe he passed away!), and the music is beautiful. Take time to watch it and share it with others.

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

I thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along th’unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head:
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.”

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth he sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With peace on earth, good will to men.”

Till, ringing, singing, on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime,
Of peace on earth, good will to men!

 

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9th Day of Christmas: Christmas Outfit Linkup

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Why do I set up for Christmas and start listening to Christmas music so early? ^^^ This is why! Christmas is almost here. I cannot believe how quickly this month has gone.

So, my pictures for this outfit linkup is just as bad as usual. But at least we took them! On Friday night, we went on a date so I got dressed up but because we were trying to get out of the house so quickly and then got home so late, I skipped the pictures. On Saturday, we went to see The Christmas Carol with TJ’s family, meaning I had another chance to dress up and snap a photo of the outfit.

Unfortunately, you really can’t see the outfit details from these photos, but I’m wearing suede wedges, leather leggings, a silk top under a sequins sweater with my red plaid coat. I kind of love all the different textures in the ensemble and how fancy it looks, yet it’s so comfortable! That Christmas tree photos is SO poor of quality, it makes me laugh, which is why I included it. Sometimes TJ purposely takes funny photos just to make us laugh, like where he’s zoomed up really close on a body part, or looking up so you see a great angle of my double chin. Thanks for being such a good sport, dear husband.

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8th Day of Christmas: Lolly & Pop Giveaway

It’s time for another giveaway! This week I’ve partnered up with my friend Kelly over at Lolly & Pop shop to give away $20 to her store. She sells the cutest leather bows and clips, so make sure you enter!

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

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7th Day of Christmas: Mr. Bean’s Nativity

We have had a really busy weekend, so of course I’m a little behind on my 12 days of Christmas blog posts.

This is one of my favorite Christmas videos of all time. Mr. Bean is the best, and I really love all of his Christmas and New Years episodes. They used to be on Netflix, but for some crazy reason were taken off. Enjoy this clip!

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6th Day of Christmas: Sugar Cookie Recipe

A couple years ago, I tried out three sugar cookie recipes. The first was my current favorite, made with shortening. The second was a classic sugar cookie recipe that had a lot of great reviews, but dried up easily. The third turned out to be my all-time favorite. They’re made with sour cream and aren’t terribly sweet, so when you add icing, it’s not a complete sugar overload.

I’ve got a lot of little gifts to hand out, like for neighbors, TJ’s coworkers, and teachers, so one evening this week I made a batch of cookies. When I started, I thought it looked like it wouldn’t make enough so I doubled the recipe. Turns out I made about 80 cookies… whoops! I guess one batch would have sufficed. But, oh well! You can really never have too many cookies, am I right?

Here’s the recipe. I cook mine for exactly 11 minutes. 10 minutes might even be better, but anything longer than 12 won’t make them taste as good, in my opinion.

Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

  • 3 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

  1. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt in bowl and set aside.
  2. Cream butter sugar, egg and vanilla. Beat 2 minutes.
  3. Add sour cream and beat well.
  4. Add dry ingredient mix (flour, baking soda, and salt) and blend well.
  5. Roll on floured board to desired thickness. (1/4 inch thick will create thick cookies that will stay moist for up to two weeks).
  6. Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters.
  7. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 325°F for 12 minutes.
  8. Allow cookies to cool completely before decorating.

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5th Day of Christmas: Christmas Outfit Linkup (Family Edition)

Lacey from Lacey Lii Photography took some family photos of us for our Christmas card and I’ve wanted to share some with you guys. So, I’m killing two birds with one stone here and linking it up on the 12 Days of Christmas Outfits series with Danica.

Figuring out what to wear for family photos gets exponentially harder as you throw kids into the mix. Trying to get everyone to coordinate is pretty much my worst nightmare, and I’d be lying if it didn’t bring me to tears the night before (postpartum hormones… yikes!). I wanted it to be Christmasy, obviously, and casual… yet classy. So, we came up with this little number and I think they turned out pretty great, thanks to Lacey!

I’ve worn my outfit bunches (I’ve had the sweater dress for years), and most recently wore it to Eva’s Christmas dance showcase but with black boots. It took me a long time to get over the fear of wearing brown and black together, but if you get the right color brown, I think it looks good.

One more thing. Can we just take a moment to wish that Eva’s leggings came in our size? I love them so much, plus they’re the softest material! Oh man, those kids of mine… I can’t get enough of their cuteness! That husband’s not that bad looking either 😉 !

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Outfit Details: Do you really care? If so, then message me and I can tell you.

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4th Day of Christmas: Favorite Christmas Blog Posts

Here are ten of my favorite Christmas themed blog posts:

  1. A Log of Four Lives: I loved Camille’s reindeer banner and snowman wreath! So cute!
  2. Danican Skywalker: Danica lists her favorite Christmas TV episodes that are on Netflix. Yankeeeeeee Swap!
  3. Messerly Moments: Erica posts something Christmasy that she and her family does every day. I’ve been copying some of the ideas (seeing the tree at Provo Town Center, painting, Provo Rec Center) and doing them with Eva!
  4. Six Sisters Stuff: I’ve posted this recipe of Grapham Cracker Toffee Crunch from the SSS blog but I have to do it again. I LOVE this toffee and it’s easier to master than plain toffee.
  5. Wearing It On My Sleeves: Sarah’s outfit with the sweatshirt and red plaid shirt looks so comfy and cute for the Christmas Season!
  6. Love Always: I really love this blogger’s post about the gift of the First Christmas and being able to share it with her children.
  7. Life is Beautiful: Sarah’s new tradition of a Christmas Kickoff Party is something I’m going to start doing in our family next year!
  8. The Morrell Tale: One of Tayler’s goals this month is to simply enjoy the holidays, and honestly I’ve realized how hard that can be sometimes if you let anxiety and stress get in the way! Making it my goal too.
  9. My Twin Love Affair: Okay, technically this one is not Christmased theme but it is a great blog post that reminds me of real Christ-like love, so you’ve got to read it.
  10. Silver Linings: Oops, this one is mine (is that tacky?)… I had nine posts I wanted to share and thought I’d make it an even 10 by adding this old blog post to the mix. It was a flashback of Eva’s Santa pictures from the past… here are the photos!
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