Training Video - Week 2

Here is Week Two's video with three more exercises! If you missed week one, click HERE.

Linking Partay!

Be sure to check out all the fun links over at the Craft-O-Maniac blog! Gotta love the link parties. I find SO many fantastic blogs and projects that I never would have found otherwise!

Training Video - Week 1

Here's the first video in our series of workout videos.

And So It Begins . . .

Ok my friends. It begins tomorrow. The challenge. The competition. The rest of my life!

A few weeks ago a friend of mine, and fellow blogger, Dan (check out his blog, it's amazing! http://www.danoah.com/) posted that he was going to do a Biggest Loser style competition. Of course I jumped on that! Number one, I don't back down from a challenge. Number two, it seemed like a fantastic way to get me super motivated to stay on track. Number three, it perfectly coincided with my plan to incorporate training and getting healthy into my blog here. Luckily, Dan held a spot for me.

It starts tomorrow. I am SOOOOOOOOOOO excited!! I'm gonna get myself from this:

Back down to THIS!

Look at me! I had collarbones!!! hahaha! I can not wait to get back to that level of fitness and health! And I'm gonna STAY there this time! No more getting lazy, making excuses, psyching myself out or anything negative like that. It's on. It's done. LET'S GO!

(The top picture is from a photoshoot done last Sunday with my friend and design partner Blake. You'll start seeing and hearing a lot more about him in the next few weeks as we get ready to launch all kinds of awesomeness on the world!)

The last week of interacting and chatting with my fellow competitors has been simply amazing. There are no words to express how grateful I am for each of them for the support, kind words and hilarity that has gone down in the group. I already feel so close to each of them, and I know we're gonna be friends for life after this! I HIGHLY recommend getting into a group such as this. I haven't felt so loved, accepted or laughed so hard in a long time! :D So thank you to everyone in the competition. Ya'll are amazing!

So if you missed it, check out my last post that has all my training materials that I will be using to keep me organized and to keep track of my progress. You can click on the pictures and it will take you to where you can download them to your computer.

I'm so excited to get back into shape and get my life and my "physical" confidence back! (I'm plenty confident, personality wise. lol! I gotta get my outside matching! ;)

Is everyone else ready to get this party started?

I thought so.

Training Materials

Ok, so I've been working on getting everything organized so I can feel like I have a plan for when I start training. I joined a Biggest Loser style competition, and I'm in it to WIN! And to support everyone else in the competition, because it's really about helping each other and having a group to cheer you on, I think. And having a group to keep one motivated! So while I created these sheets for me, I wanted to share them for anyone to use if they wanted. (Some of the templates I got from www.mommytrackd.com and I filled them out, if you want to see what other template things they have.)

Click on any of the pictures to download them to your computer. It will take you to a different site.

First, I created a calendar, so I could keep track of what workouts I want to do each week. Which muscle group I want to work on what days. (This is a blank sheet that if you download and follow me, you can fill it out as we go. Then you have a written plan for you to go back to.)

I also created a calendar for July, in case anyone preferred that.

Then there are measurement trackers for both men and women.

Here is a blank menu planner:

Then here are the ones I'll be following. Yes, I eat the same thing everyday for a week at a time. It makes it easy to prepare ahead of time and it's SUPER cost effective. I have the first 4 weeks planned. You definitely don't have to follow what I do, by any means. But there might be a meal idea on there for you. :)

Week 1:

Week 2:

Week 3:

Week 4:

For the first 4 weeks I'll be going vegetarian, to help cleanse all the junk that's been building up in my body. I'll be doing strength training but the first few weeks will be MOSTLY cardio, to really help jump start the actual pounds coming off. And to keep me in the competition! ;)

So, to anyone in the competition who is reading this: GOOD LUCK TO US ALL!!! It's going to be amazing and I can't wait to see everyone's "after" pics! And to everyone else reading this, I'm excited to share these things with you and hope someone finds something useful in them. :) I'll have the first video of exercises posted hopefully by next Monday. YAY!

HERE WE GO!

Brave Girls Giveaway!

Welcome to my blog, fellow Brave Girls!! I am so happy and excited to have you here! And to my current followers, if you haven't heard about the Brave Girls Club, you DEFINITELY need to check it out. It's an amazing place full of love, hope and encouragement. They have a class called Soul Restoration, which I've been wanting to take since I saw them debut it. I can't believe I haven't taken it yet, because it looks like a truly incredible experience. If you want more information on it, click the image below:

They also have a Brave Girls Camp, that I would seriously consider trading one of my kids to go to. Just sayin'. ;) hahaha!! I'm kidding, of course. But you get the gist of how badly I want to go. lol

And even though I haven't taken the SOUL Restoration classes yet, I still feel such a connection to the Brave Girls and to pretty much everything they do over there, that I wanted to be a part of it even if I'm just doing a giveaway on their page. I would love nothing more than to send this:

to one lucky Brave Girl! This, I think, by far is one of my most favorite pieces that I have created. I love all the colors, working together, shining and sparkling in the light. There are so many yummy beads in here, it's like having a different necklace every time you move with how they move around and shift.

Here's some close ups:

And, if you'd like instructions on how to make it, so you can make one for yourself, check out this blog post I did a few weeks ago: http://vintage53.blogspot.com/2011/05/blingity-bling-ribbon-rhinestones-blog.html

Also, while I have your attention here, check out the purple box on the lower right hand side of my blog. I was involved in an amazing blog hop earlier this month, and we're working to raise money to send to a women's shelter to help families who have been victims of domestic violence. There are some really amazing prizes you can be entered to win by sending cards with messages of hope to our sisters out there. To count for entry, cards need to be postmarked by June 30, but if you can, please send a card. It'd be amazing to be able to share messages of hope and strength to as many women as we can. :D

Ok, back to the giveaway here! To enter:

Leave a comment on this post. Tell me one amazing thing that you love about yourself that you have learned from being a Brave Girl. Let's get some positive mojo going!! I'll start: One thing I love about me is I know that no matter what life throws in front of me, I can and WILL make things work out. :) I'm definitely an "it doesn't matter if the cup is half full or half empty, because I know how to fill it up" kind of person.

Your turn!

For EXTRA entries you can do the following, and please leave a separate comment for each thing you do. If you lump it all together into one comment, it will just count for one entry unfortunately. So be sure you get your extra entries!!

• Be a follower of my facebook page HERE

• Be a follower of the blog

• Share the giveaway by posting it to your own facebook

• Share the giveaway by posting a link in your own blog

• Tweet about the giveaway

So that's SIX entries you could have! Entries must be in by midnight on Tuesday June 28th. I will post the winner on Wednesday June 29th.

Good luck everyone!! And thank you for taking the time to visit my blog, I am so grateful to have you here.

Have an amazing day! -Brie

Father's Day Fun!

Ok, so since there's no "dad" around our house, we always make Papa's Day things for my dad. (My kids and I live at home with my parents.) I made this coupon book for the kids to give to Papa.

The kids helped me come up with different coupon ideas:

We have a total of 14 coupons, 6 of them being fill in the blank. Other ones we did are:
• Game night
• Snuggle time
• Help with yardwork

Squish hugs are something my 5 year old came up with. It where you squeeze each other really, really, REALLY tightly and you don't let go. He also does squish kisses, but those are rare. ;) lol

I simply cut 3"x6" rectangles out of patterned paper and scored them all along one side about 1/4" in. Then I typed out the coupons and printed them on lined paper. I LOVE the look that creates, it looks just like a stamp. I cut those out and just adhered them to the patterned paper. I just used American Crafts adhesives. Then I just applied a line of adhesive on the 1/4" section and stuck them all together. The scoring makes it so the pages turn easier. Then I just wrapped a length of floss around the side and tied a bow. Done and done. :D

I made this card as well, using the downloaded template from Lifestyle Crafts. You can find that HERE. I made mine look like the cheesy fun things my dad would wear "back in the day." :D

I used my trusty Pilot Permaball pen to outline the tie, make it stand out a bit. I had the kids each write a little message on a sheet of paper that I folded up and tucked into the card. (If you follow the pattern from the download, it folds in half. I just tucked it in there.)

The kids were so excited to give these things to their Papa! It was fun seeing their faces as he looked through his coupon book and read his little messages. :)

Holder of Endless Possibilities!

I've seen this project done in several places. The Crafting Chicks have done it. Brett Lund, my partner in crime at Roberts Crafts, did it. Here's my take on it:

A few of my things from my April Gilded Girls Society Stash look amazing in it!! (The Gilded Girls is a "kit club" kind of thing, but instead of being sent scrapbook kits, they send out the most amazing and delicious vintage finds like fabrics and rhinestones and custom mixed German glass glitter . . . . I've told them I want to be a member for life!! lol)

But really . . . . the possibilities are endless when it comes to things I could put in there. Scrapbook embellishments . . . jewelry . . . beads . . . flowers . . . I need to make more! :D

(*waving my hand in a Jedi motion* You do not see the electrical cord in the background.) All I did was take two brass candlesticks and two silver mini mixing bowls that I found at the local thrift store and glued them together with the magical substance, E6000. I let it dry over night, then I spray painted it this amazing blue color! The bowls were $1.00 each, the candlesticks were 75¢ each. Spray paint was the most expensive thing coming in at $3.99. Ya just can't beat that. :D

True love.

It's My Birthday!

Congratulations Heather!! I've sent you an email. Reply back to it with your address and I'll get your prize sent out to you. 


Thanks, everyone, for entering and sharing your stories and birthday wishes!! I just posted another giveaway today, if you'd like to enter that one. :) Good luck!!


http://vintage53.blogspot.com/2011/06/brave-girls-giveaway.html




UPDATE!!
I won a Cricut cartridge today at work, but since I don't own a Cricut, I thought I'd pass it on to the winner of this giveaway! YAY!

I wanted to take the opportunity while I had y'all's attention with a GIVEAWAY!!! to introduce a new thing I will be incorporating to this blog. In my "About Me" page, I mention that I had been really into training and healthy living. And if you've followed my blog for a while, you'll know I've done things like post weekly meal plans and fitness tips. WELL. I'm going to expand upon that! I've been supremely slacking the last two years and my waistline is hating me for it. :( I came across a picture of me from back then, and while I still had a good 30-40lbs to lose at the point the picture was taken, I looked GOOD! I'm going to work hard to get back to that, and I'd love for anyone who wants to join me to follow along! My goal is to get back to where I was by Christmas this year, and down to my original goal for my birthday next year!

Here's me, two years ago, at the Scrapbook Expo in SLC, UT. My work, Roberts Crafts, had a booth there and I got to go play. That was a FUN day! :) Look at me! I had a defined chin and collarbones!! hahahaha

So here's the plan.

I met with the man who helped me get started on my weight loss journey two years ago, my old trainer and good friend Raleigh Campbell, and he's going to help me with this new feature on the blog. He and I are going to film different exercises and show how you can adapt them for either a gym setting or for at home. I know not everyone can make it to the gym. I know not everyone has time for extensive workouts. BUT We do all have time for being healthy and we owe it to ourselves to be so! :) So we'll have weekly videos and blog posts with exercise and healthy living tips, advice and whatever else we can think of to help us all out. And I'm going to start up my weekly meal plan posts again. I know how I do it isn't going to work for everyone. But I hope that someone can find something within what I post that can help them. You don't have to follow my meal plans, but maybe they'll give you an idea for dinner one night. :) Or something like that. lol

NOW ON TO THE GIVEAWAY!!!

Since it's my birthday, I'm going to celebrate by giving YOU the opportunity to win this:

Rhinestone charm necklace, made with a gear from 7Gypsies.

AND THESE!

 

• Enter a comment to be counted for your first entry. Tell me what your fitness goals are, and what you'd like to see in the videos and posts we do. I'd love your feedback, and I want it to be something beneficial for all! :D

For additional entries:

• Be a follower of this blog - leave a comment on this post telling me you are a follower.

• Go and "Like" Vintage 53 on facbook. Click HERE to go to the facebook page. Leave a comment on this blog post, letting me know you are following me there.

• Share this giveaway on your own facebook pages. Leave a comment on this post letting me know you shared.

• Share this giveaway on your blog. Leave a comment on this post letting me know you shared. I'd love to see your own blogs as well! :)

• Tweet about this giveaway. Leave a comment on this post letting me know you tweeted.

So you'll have 6 chances to enter! Remember to leave a SEPARATE comment for each entry. I'll pick a winner on Tuesday of next week, which is June 21.

Thank you all for the support and for sharing the page! I really appreciate it and am grateful for each of you. :) Have an amazing day everyone! And good luck!

The Goal Project

As I was driving home from work last night, a sudden thought hit me. And it overwhelmed me.

I have a lot of goals. SOOO many things I want to do in my life. I need to write them down. I don't want to call it a bucket list. That sounds so morbid. lol! So I'm calling it my Goal Project.

I've really loved the idea of an art journal, but I'm horrible at journal keeping. Even an artsy one. So I kind of took a twist on the art journal, and am making a goal journal. Of course, I had to make it all cute and fun! And it's not finished yet, but I wanted to show you what I started. I wanted it to be made of fabric. I thought being able to use different fabrics would make such a fun background! I'm going to include pockets for pictures and journal cards and things like that. I'm so excited!!!

Here's what it looks like(ish):

Here's how I did it:

Take 2 rectangles of fabric and a slightly smaller rectangle of the heavy duty white stuff that's not interfacing, but you find it in the same spot in the fabric store. (If you haven't figured out this about me, I am SOOO not technical or precise when I craft. LOL) If anyone knows the name of that stuff, I'd love to hear it. haha!

I wanted a lot of fun texture on my cover, so I took a strip of netting and sewed down one side of it and gathered it. (It does not have to be cut straight. In fact, having a completely uneven cut only adds to the fun look of it at the end. You'll see what I mean.)

See how the uneven cut gives it different levels of dimension? LOVE IT! So pin your gathered netting about 3" from the bottom. And sew it on.

I sewed it so far over to make sure I got it all sewn. With it gathered so much, I didn't want to miss any spots.

I cut a strip of lace and fan folded it to "gather" it. Then I laid it over the netting and pinned it down.

I sewed it across the top, then along the bottom in two spots to make sure it was tacked down well. I intend to use this for a LONG time, and don't want the lace falling off.

Then I did a zig zag stitch around the whole thing, leaving about 3/4" of space on the edge.

I left that much space so I could go around with pinking shears.

I found some cute ribbon from my stash, and used Glossy Accents to glue it down.

I love ribbon!!! I'll post more pictures as I add to it and get it "finished." :)

I repeated that for my inside pages, minus all the trims and ribbon. I will sew things like pockets onto those pages, to hold photos and things like that. 

I'm going to use the Crop-A-Dile to "three hole punch" it, then I'm going to use binder rings to hold it together. I want to be able to add more pages to it as I go. I'm sure I'll find more goals to reach for in life! I want to have a page for each goal, and as I achieve them I can add things to my pages like photos or journal cards, memorabilia from whatever the goal was.

Here's my list of goals. So far.

• Travel the world!
• Get back in to theater/film. London or New York. I'm good with either option. ;)
• Volunteer on an archeological dig. (My dream from when I was 11 was to be an Egyptologist. lol)
• Swim with dolphins. (My other dream was to be a killer whale/dolphin trainer at Sea World. I love me! haha I'm so random!)
• Get back into a shape that is NOT round. (In progress - more on that in my next post!)
• Do a triathlon (I was SOOO close before! GAH!)
• Design a scrapbook line. (In progress!)
• Own my own craft company. (Also in progress! YAY!)
• Travel all over teaching crafting.
• Start a scholarship for single moms.
• Write a book.
• Write a screenplay. (In progress.)
• Write a song. (Also in progress. Working on a lullaby for my kids.)

I think that's a pretty good list for now. lol! What are some of your goals?