The Struggle to Keep the Weight Off - Ju Jubes and Jelly Beans!

Those that know me really well may have questioned my expertise on a couple of my posts.  I wouldn't necessarily be known as an expert in keeping the house tidy etc... But, when it comes to candy... that is my area of expertise!

I have never been a skinny person, and I don't really aspire to be, just healthy.  When I speak of a struggle with weight, I speak of the struggle with questions like "Why can't I pass up the after Easter 50% off specials on chocolate?" and "Why are JuJubes on sale every time I go to the bulk food store to by something else?"  I am my own worst enemy when it comes to stocking my cupboards (I have a stash at work and at home) with things that I shouldn't be eating.  And of course, as a working mom, I don't have hours each day to get a workout in.  If I have an hour a few times a week, I'm doing good. 

So, what to do?  I am currently trying to keep of the weight that I lost over 6 months ago... a little after having my third child.  I am trying to stay motivated by telling myself that I don't want to have to lose it again.  At some point I'd love to lose a little more...but one step at a time.  So I've developed a few techniques:

• first, I almost never completely eliminate the treats I love...that drives me to those terrible binges
• second, I use the treats as a reward for doing some exercise....(I know, if I did the exercise without the reward, the benefits would be even greater...but it's a start!)  If I don't have time to do any workout today...then I simply delay my treat to tomorrow.  Somehow I manage to talk myself out of it that way.
• third, yesterday is gone...don't dwell on a bad day... it can start a cycle that turns into a bad week etc.
• finally, set reasonable goals...we don't all have time to workout as much as we'd like.  Some days, the goal is simply to get a 15 minute walk in at my lunchtime.

So, what works for you...I'd love to hear it!

Quick Bathroom Clean-up Tips

Okay, so on the last post we decided to lower our standards...but in the area of the bathroom, you don't want to lower your standards too much!  This has always been an area that I can't stand being dirty...I mean it's the room where you're trying to get clean...how can you do that if it's dirty?

Anyway, I have come up with a way to both keep it from getting out of control and clean it up fast...here are my tips:

• Stop using soap!  How can we get clean without soap?  Okay, so what I really mean is stop using bars of soap.  At our house we use shower gel in the shower and liquid hand soap at the sink.  The difference is amazing!  There is no soap scum to clean up, meaning that cleaning the sink & tub are much easier.
• The 'change towel clean up' - every time you change the hand towel in the bathroom, take the dirty towel and wipe down the sink & counter.  If it's a full bathroom, do the shower every so often this way too, and even the floor.  The idea here is not to aim for perfection, but maintenance.
• Antibacterial wipes - so the above method won't clean away many of the germs...so I like to keep antibacterial wipes handy for an added clean up from time to time.  Be sure to get the taps, door handles, toilet handles etc.  I do this a little more often these days since I never know when the kids are going to leave the door open and the littlest is going to make a visit!
• Gel pucks for the toilet - without promoting a specific brand...there are some stiff gel toilet cleaners that you apply to the main bowl area to keep cleaning it every time you flush...they don't turn the water blue, but I find them way more effective than the tank pucks I've used in the past.  They also keep the bathroom smelling a little fresher.
• The 'change toothbrush clean up' - this one is less frequent...but when I get a little more ambitious and it's time for a toothbrush change...I clean those little hard to get corners with the toothbrush before throwning it away.  (Make sure you have a replacement before doing this!)

I find these tips keep the major bathroom cleaning to a minimum, which is important when we don't have a lot of time... or when we just don't enjoy this type of job!