Quick Update

I really do recommend this book. It has had such a profound impact on my life. I was taking my husband for granted, and not noticing the little things he did that make me feel special.

By focusing on trying to express my love and appreciation to him on a daily basis, I've been able to see the things he is doing for me. I also feel so much better about myself - it feels really good to try to make someone else feel good. :)

While I am done with the initial 21 day challenge, I continually refer back to the book so that I can redo many of the projects. This has been a wonderful blessing to my family - thank you Kathi!!

~ Wendi

Winner: The Husband Project by Kathi Lipp

I'd like to start with a huge thank you to Kathi Lipp who generously offered a copy of her book to one person last week, and one this week - - - yes, my weeks are a bit off as my "last week" was a bit drawn out, but I'm really hoping we are over the worst of colds and can move onto normal life!

So - huge congratulations go out to the winner:

Alyce!

I've sent Alyce an email and will be forwarding her address to Kathi.

I'll have the second giveaway up shortly for another copy of Kathi's Book!

~ Wendi

The Husband Project Update

Ok - so life really does happen, even when you are sick! The last two weeks have been filled with sniffles, coughs, runny noses, fevers, ear infections and a big huge migraine on my part. . . . and a slight health melt-down!

Both my husband and I determined that we had gained 10+ pounds since September (we had each lost around 25 pounds on the South Beach Diet), and we need to start eating healthier again. . . well, healthier snacks, because I really have changed our dinners to be more healthy.

I decided that as the whole point of this project was to show my husband that I love and appreciate him, I decided to focus on health last week and part of this week, as he is really concerned about the extra weight, cholesterol, blood pressure, etc.

1. I pulled the South Beach books back out to see if I could start making a menu. I'm really NOT any good at this type of thing, so as of tonight - I'm still trying to figure out what to do here!

2. I threw out a bunch of junk food, and am trying to come to terms with throwing out a few more.

3. I went to our local Costco and picked up a bunch of fruits and veggies and cottage cheese (yes, I know - on the SB diet, fruit is not ok in the beginning, but our son loves fruit, and my hubby didn't know that we were re-starting, so I thought I'd try substituting the fruit for normal sugary snacks)

4. I pulled out all my serving size-ish tupperware type containers, and washed, sliced, scooped my way through everything I had just purchased.

5. I organized the top shelf of the fridge to hold each of the items (cottage cheese, pepper slices, celery and a few others) in neat rows that would be easy to grab out.

Now I need to re-organize the pantry and continue to throw out junk food or non-healthy items and come up with some more things I can pre-make so snacks and breakfast/lunch are easy to pull together.

Hmmm - my biggest problem?? Anyone have some suggestions on how to build menus and shopping lists? I've always struggled with this!

~ Wendi

Day 15: Project: What Not To Wear

I had so much fun with this Project. My husband didn't know it, but he actually helped me with this one. He stayed home sick, so he was able to watch our son while I went shopping.

This project requires you to get rid of one piece of clothing that your husband doesn't like - even if it's a favorite!

This was a no-brainer for me! I've got 4 pairs of pj's that are OLD! Not to mention slightly less age-appropriate, and certainly not sexy in any way, not that that is my goal. . . . I also have a few t-shirts that aren't exactly flattering and some shirts whose collars have certainly seen better days - so . . . out they go!

Now for the fix. A local store is having a clearance sale - 70% off the LOWEST price! I really was shopping for myself, but ended up getting more for my husband and son (who seems to grow more quickly these days). I did replace 2 of the 4 pj's with cute little pink knee length pjs with cute buttons and some girly touches. what fun! I also picked up two slightly more flattering shirts and a nice pair of black slacks so I can occasionally go out without wearing jeans!

Ok - then I got some 2T, 3T AND 4T basics for our son, and a few shirts and a sweatshirt (a very nice one) for my hubby.

In all a great day - got rid of a few less than complimentary items from my closet (underwear drawer too!), and purchased over $550 in clothing for $197 including tax (which is a whopping 9%).

Day 14: Gratitude Journal

Today I am grateful for . . .

1. Modern medicine - our son is starting to feel better!

2. Along those same lines - I'm grateful that our pediatrician has emergency Saturday hours!

3. My husband let me sleep in this morning!

4. Our son seems to be happy with his Daddy again - he was friendly to him today which is a nice change. (I think he gets used to having him home all day on the weekends, and then gets his little feelings hurt when Daddy has to go to work during the week.)

5. I got a jump-start on the laundry today, which is a great way to start the new week.

What are you grateful for today?

Days 10-14: MIA, But The Project Lives On!

Ok - so this week was not an ideal week! My two-year-old became really sick with the sneezy, coughing, runny nose, etc stuff. . . then I came down with it . . . then my husband . . . then our two-year-old got a really bad ear infection in BOTH ears! Yikes!! We spent all day Saturday on the couch because every time I tried to put him down he would cry. My poor hubby - that was really the first day I didn't do some small thing for the Husband Project. . . unless you count holding our son all day so my hubby didn't have to hear crying all day? :)

So - I did small things like making lunch, leaving notes, giving him some free time, etc. In fact, this morning/afternoon, he had about four-and-a-half hours to do whatever he wanted!

I'm crossing my fingers that the rest of the weeks in the Husband Project go a little more according to plan than this last one! There were some great projects in the book that I will either double-up over the next week or two, or I will do some of them after the 21 days.

:) Wendi

Day 9: Project - Its all about his tummy! (Another diversion from the book)

Ok - so my niece was here all day and is spending the night again (winter vacation), so I had to kind of wing-it today, but I DID remember my husband throughout the day, and so I planned a very nice Greek dinner that I thought would surprise and delight him!

He DID love it, which made me feel really great. Yeah!

Now I'm off to read about tomorrow's project and start planning.

~ Wendi