Transformation Tuesday: Good Vibes Only

posted in: weight loss | 0

Tranformational Tuesday Good Vibes Only

One of the biggest encouragements to me in the losing weight and healthy living game is affirmation from others.  Words of affirmation are important to me in almost every area of life, so there is no reason it should be any different in this area.

Maybe you are the same?  And maybe you do have people in your life who are your encouraging accountability friends and also those friends who give you the right words even when you’ve blown it by eating a hot fudge brownie sundae because you were having a bad day (those days happen).  They are the friends you have, either by text, phone, or in person, that will help you when you are wanting to ruin all the hard work you’ve done by blowing off your diet because its “that time of the month”.  You hopefully have people in your life who are helpful with new healthy recipes or new exercises that will help you beat the humdrum diet chamber we all can get in sometime.

One area that I think everyone needs encouragement in is the closet.  Most women are emotionally helped when they look nice.  I remember that lesson from high school.  If you want to do good on a test, dress smart or dress nice that day.  It would usually boost your test scores more than if you wore cut-offs and flipflops. Well, women, if you are losing weight, keep your closet a “good vibe only” place!

Pictures below: at 225 when my older son was 4 months old.  and last week at 166 when my older son is almost 3.  I really love that scarf and my hair in the picture on the left.  But, I love that outfit a whole lot more on the right!

Before & After

Here are a couple of things to consider:

  1.  Wear what fits.  Right now I am in between sizes in my jeans.  The ones that I’ve been wearing are getting too big, but the ones I have folded on my skinny shelf fit fine in the legs, but still leave me with a muffin top (that no woman wants).  Tip: wear the bigger ones.  They will make you look smaller than if you are trying to squeeze every single pound into too small of clothes.
  2. Wear what makes you feel pretty.  If you think you look pretty, stylish, or thin – chances are other people will think so too because you will exude more confidence.  That confidence will also help you as you eat that day.  It will remind you of all your hard work that you’ve put into a new healthy lifestyle.
  3. Ask your spouse/boyfriend/SO: The person I want to please most with what I wear is my husband.  His is the gaze I want to hold.  So, ask your mister (or significant other) what he likes, what looks good on you, what patterns he would go for, etc.  And if he doesn’t like something, and you aren’t that attached to it, sell it or give it away – no use having it in your closet.
  4. Don’t beat yourself up!  The print above is from my friend Bpaperie and I won it from her shop.  It helps when I look at it in my closet to not be so condemning of every roll or stretch mark (thank you babies and years of weight loss yo-yo dieting) or inch of cellulite.  Focus on your strengths and how much weight you have already lost.

Creatives: BPaperie (& Giveaway)

posted in: creatives | 2

Sometimes, when you get to watch someone do an every day job (say, an office assistant), you know they have a creative streak in them that is just dying to come out.  That is the way I felt as I’ve gotten to know Beth of BPaperie.  Beth and I worked at the same location in Louisville, then went to the same church.  She of course is a wife, and has her sweet dog which you can always find pictures of.  And she has a day job which she is great at.  But, a love of hers is creativity.  She is wonderful at taking the ordinary and making it bright and lovely and inspiring.

Christ Wells BPaperie Quote

For my office (which is really a corner of our dining room), I wanted something new and inspiring as a I write and do photo editing.  She happily obliged with a giveaway for my readers – just like you!  And she designed this beautiful art with a quote I got from singer/songwriter Christa Wells from Emily Freeman’s book A Million Little Ways.  Since this has been such a hard season of life with many changes coming, I picked this quote because it spoke to me of hope.  When I look at it encourages me to keep going and keep pressing on in my dreams.

I asked Beth to answer a few questions so y’all could get to know her.  Here is a sneak peak into her life as a creative:

1.Why bpaperie?

I started bpaperie as a creative outlet. My “about” section on Etsy says this, which I think might answer the question: I’ve wanted to own a design shop for as a place that smells good and is filled with fun things. A place to be inspired; a place where my puppy can run around in a cute sweater. And a place that’s affordable, too!
But since my husband’s in school, I’m stuck with a boring 9-5 job instead.  I’ve wanted to open an etsy shop for a while — a creative outlet of my  own — but I’ve been too scared to do it. It’s easy to let doubts fill  my heart and keep me from doing what I love — what if no one likes my  work? What if nothing sells? What if I’m a failure?
I can’t let  those things hold me back anymore! Bpaperie has been a long time coming. It’s the next best thing to a “real” store. And if you want to see  pictures of my cute pup in a sweater, shoot me an email. I’m happy to  oblige. 🙂

2. How did you come up with the name for your store?

My husband, Wes, often calls me “B,” and I love paper goods.  I was trying to decide between two names, and this one stuck.

3. What does your creative time sometimes look like?
             A lot of times I end up designing while on the couch watching TV. Glamorous, right? 🙂 Usually while Wes is watching Law & Order or something I’ve seen before that doesn’t require a lot of attention. We sit as a family of three on the couch (Wes, me, and Lucy, our puppy) and I’m content to play around with different fonts, textures, quotes, and graphics until I figure out something that seems to work.
4. What happens when the creativity just isn’t flowing – kinda like writer’s block? 
             I’m not sure what you mean by this question. Like when I have “real job” deadlines and I don’t have time to get creative? It’s hard. My day job demands a lot (most!) of my time and mental energy during the week. I’m still in the start-up stage for bpaperie, which requires a lot of investment in terms of time, money, and creativity. I’m trying to get my name out there via facebook and instagram, I’m selling in a shop in downtown Louisville (Block Party Handmade), and I’m looking forward to the day when most of my customers aren’t friends & family members. 🙂 But mostly, I love what I’m doing; this has been a dream of mine for a long time. So that motivates me to work hard and make things happen!
BPaperie
I hope you can find encouragement to pursue your creative dreams by hearing just some of Beth’s story.  Here is the fun information on the giveaway:  Beth is giving away one print from her Etsy story to one reader of kd316.  Here is how you can enter:
1.  Go to BPaperie on Etsy and come back and tell me which one of her prints you would want to have in your home
2.  Follow thekd316 and bpaperie on Instagram.  Come back here and tell me that you followed.
3.  Share this blog with your friends on FB or Twitter and return here and leave me a comment telling me you did so
Winner will be announced on Friday!