My Journey to Weight Loss

It has been a fun and challenging journey trying to lose my baby weight. I never knew how easy it was to put on the pounds after giving birth. Already being overweight with a baby, and then going through the months of getting used to having a baby, I really put off exercising and eating right, which all added up to me having enough of how I looked and decided to give it a try. I never really dieted before. Frankly, I've always been very active and never really had to worry about my weight. I have learned a lot about my own metabolism through this process. Here are my statistics:

(In full disclosure, this post has been really hard for me to put together. It is very personal to me, and sharing these things with other makes me very nervous! Please keep anything on this post private. This is one of the reasons I wanted to make my blog private. I would really appreciate it.)

Goal Weight: 130

Pre Pregnancy Weight: 143

9 Months Pregnant: 170

8 months later: 153

March 25th: 132

And here is the tracking sheet of my weight loss so far:

Jan 1-153

Jan 7-151

Jan 30-146

Feb 7-142

Feb 9-139

Mar 3-136

Mar 9-135

Mar 11-133

Mar 23-132

Total Weight Lost: 21 pounds

My original goal weight was 130, and I am frustrated I haven't reached it yet, but I am determined to do it and this blog post hopefully will help me focus on getting to that goal! After that, 125 is my end goal. I know I can do it, I just need to continue my exercise program and continue eating whole foods.

Exercise Program:

3-5 days a week: Jillian Michaels Killer buns & thighs, Ripped in 30, and Killer Abs

4 days a week: I work out with my students at school

Foods I try to avoid: French fries, soda, high calorie desserts, pizza, fast food, red meat, high carb food etc. 

Foods I try to eat more of: Spinach, apples, kale, green smoothies, lots of fruits, vegetable soups, whole wheat tortillas and bread, (basically more of a plant based diet). 

One of the main reasons I started this whole thing was because of my health. My thyroid was out of whack for several months after I had Autumn. I was exhausted all of the time! I wanted to sleep all day long. I had to work, and also be responsible for my baby. I felt so inadequate that I could not be the person I so wanted to be. I had no energy to exercise, let along watch what I ate. By the end of Christmas I decided to make a big change. I had Spencer's full support. He even did a workout with me once (still need to work on him exercising with me more). He said if I reached my goal weight he would buy me a new wardrobe (which I did get some new clothes already:) The incentive was there, and I think that made all of the difference. I bought my workout dvds, my 5 pound weights, and I went to the store to purchase new foods to follow the Jillian Michaels diet plan. I started seeing results in just 2 weeks! It was amazing...feeling faster, stronger, healthier- it was an amazing feeling.

I still am not feeling 100%, but the dieting and exercising has made a dramatic improvement in how I feel. I would say I started at feeling 60% better, and now I feel 80-85% better. I can honestly say this past year has been one of the most trying times of my life since I have had all of these health issues (not just my thyroid. There have been other things wrong like lightheadedness, headaches, etc). There were certain days where I didn't know how I was going to make it through without passing out. It was so hard. It still is hard, but it is getting better. Heavenly Father really knew what I needed to learn. We are given trials that will help us grow and become better.

This has also been a year where I have learned the most about who I am, who I want to become, and where I want my life to go from here. It was not just about losing weight. It was about taking control of my life. Once I am 100% healed, I plan to live each day to its fullest. Never taking my health for granted again. Loving my family to the best of my capability, serving others around me, and becoming the daughter that heavenly father has always known I could become. I also want my dad to be proud of me in heaven. I know he has been watching out for me and is so proud of the things I have learned so far. If there is something in your life that you want to change, figure out first why you need to change it, then pray to Heavenly Father to help you find a way to overcome whatever it is you need to overcome. I promise he will help you!

Here are some before and after pictures. I know I am no where being skinny, but I am happy with the progress I have made so far :)

                                                                                

Thanksgiving: left

Present Day: Right

September: Left

Present Day: Right

                               

Now

I feel so much healthier, happier, and more confident! My old clothes fit again...and I am even a little smaller than where I was before I had Autumn.

 

And I bought my first pair of skinny jeans!

Before I started my exercise and diet routine (Day 1)

I think this was week 2 of ripped in 30

  Day 7 (don't mind the rolls!)

Week 3 or 4 

And as of March 25th, here is my before and after look 

My goal is to get to 125!! Only 7 more to go   

                               

March 25th

It feels great to be where I am at. I hope I have maybe inspired others to start the challenge of living a healthier lifestyle. I have heard a couple of people say I have been a big inspiration, which makes it all worth it. Plus, when people say "have you lost weight"? that makes me so happy! It is definitely a lot of work and requires a lot of discipline. Mind over matter has never rung so true. Thanks for all your support and positive words! More to come soon!

Valentine's Day 2013

So I know you are wondering "what did the Bagleys do for Valentine's Day this year?" Well, I will tell you! It started off with a fun 6th Grade Valentine's Day DANCE!! Yes, I did say 6th Grade Dance! And I was invited! Haha. Starting about 6 weeks before the big day the 6th graders learned several partner dances including the cha cha, the jitterbug, the waltz, and several fun line dances including "Gangnam Style!" I helped teach the dances, and the 6th graders for the most part enjoyed themselves. Except for the part where they had to touch each other. It was so funny watching them get all nervous about having to hold a girl's or a guy's hand or heaven forbid put an arm around their back! The dance went very well. All the students dressed up so nicely and everyone had a blast (including the parents).

Here is one of the classes. Aren't the decorations awesome?

My awesome specialty team! Melanie and Susan who teach computers and music. We joined in and danced a few of the line dances.

That night I surprised Spencer with a bunch of Valentine's decorations and a yummy meal! I wanted to do something really special for him, since he is always such a hard worker and he has done so much for me over the past year since I've been a working mom. He is so selfless and kind, especially when I don't feel well. I told him this year, it was his time to get the VIP treatment! Last year he made me an amazing meal. I love making holidays special! It gives me something to look forward to.

On the menu:

Tri Tip

Asparagus

Mashed Potatoes

Valentine's Cookies

Spencer bought me some chocolates, V8 Sparking fruit drink (since I rarely drink soda), and a very sweet card.

We exchanged cards and chocolates and then finished off the night with a fun movie. 

Did you really think we left Autumn out of her very 1st Valentine's Day? Let's just say she really enjoyed those mashed potatoes. Such a fun and cute girl! Although I do think she was really loud during dinner. She made this year that much more special :) Hope you and yours had a wonderful day!

10 Months Old!

Autumn has been making so much progress lately with walking! She is trying it ALL OF THE TIME now and is determined to do it. I have seen her take 12 steps so far at one time. She stands up, walks to wherever she is going and then once she gets there she falls down. When she is tired or really wobbly, she’ll only take a couple steps. She can walk with holding things in her hands and she likes to clap her hands also when she walks. Autumn is very curious! She loves to look for everything and see anything that makes noises. She is starting to notice things on TV more so we are playing more kids movies. She started to pick up her play phone, push buttons, and she also puts it up to her ears! She likes to grab her head and still shakes it. Yesterday she said “Autumn” and today she said “mama”. It is adorable. She still dances to music. She looks too little to walk around still. But she is getting a little taller and a little thicker. She has been crawling with things in her hands like remotes and bottles. She loves opening books and turning the pages.

Her face is so beautiful. She looks at you and you can see pure love and pure adoration. She is so innocent and loving, so fun and happy! I just love being around her so much. She makes me feel so fulfilled. I can’t imagine my life without the love of my daughter. People say that they didn’t want their kids walking too early, but I think it is great that they can develop their skills early! She loves to grab her teddy bears and stuff them in her mouth and give them a big hug. She is also clapping her feet together when she lays down. She is starting to recognize belly buttons and likes to kiss my tummy when she sees it. Late at night when she gets ready for sleep I nurse her and rock her, and then she lays on my shoulder. She will lift her head up and stare at me until I give her kisses. Right now she is hugging her eyore stuffed animal and her yellow ducky stuffed animal. She likes to carry it around. She makes the cutest noises always and makes us laugh a lot when she is in her crib by herself making noises. She started sleeping through the night again. Last night she woke up and cried for about 10 minutes. I fell back asleep though so it must not have been very long. She is fitting into size 18 month clothes now! The 12 months size is getting a little tight on her. Yay! We bought her the CUTEST EASTER DRESS EVER! It is the most beautiful dress I have EVER seen! She is going to look amazing.

Talking: During her 10th month she has started to say words and make a connection with things that she says. The first real word I heard her say is ba ba for bottle, and then just a couple days later she started to say "ball" but it's more like "baol". She points to her pink ball I bought from her at the store and says "ball." She loves saying it! She also says da da A LOT and sometimes ma ma. She says "ti ti" for thank you. She is still making really cute noises when she walks around. 

Food: She is getting a lot more solid foods now, we share our dinner with her. She drinks more formula then breast milk, but I still nurse her a few times a day. She loves eating the lil' crunchies, puffs, mum mum's, bananas, strawberries, squash, apples, raspberries, and pretty much anything we give her she will eat. It is nice that she is not very picky. When she wants to eat something that we have, she'll stand in front of us and kind of smack her lips and make cute noises. Not begging, but you can tell that she would be HAPPY if we shared with her :)

Naps: Taking about 2 naps a day still. One around 10:30, and the other around 2:00. She is sleeping in until about 8am now which is so nice! She goes to bed around 9, sometimes 8 if we are lucky! Soon after we put her down and she falls asleep she will wake up and cry for about 10 seconds at a time, and then fall back asleep instantly. It happens 1-2 times usually. It's pretty funny. Spencer and I just look at each other like "why does she do that?" 

Toys: Her favorite toys are the little brown bear Spencer had growing up, her books, the pink ball, and my cell phone. She still can sit in her pak n' play and play with her toys for like 10-40 minutes at a time. She is very self entertained which is so nice when I have stuff I need to get done. 

Motor Skills: Picking up things and handing them to me! It is so adorable. Even if she doesn't have anything big in her hands she will pretend to give something to me. I say "thank you" everytime she gives me something and she says "ti ti" back. So precious. She is starting to pick up on things like clothes and hair products. Tonight she found some socks and started putting them on her feet. She also takes headbands and hair ties and tries to put them around her head. When she finds my brush she tries to brush her hair. She is a very observant little girl! She likes to put diapers on her head and still puts almost anything in her mouth. She is getting better at not putting every tiny little speck she finds on the ground in her mouth, but we still have to watch out for her. We were at the park yesterday and she tried putting little rocks in her mouth. No!! Autumn is also walking EVERYWHERE! She is fast too. At first she looked so funny as a walker because her legs are so short. But she is slowly starting to be more stable and look more normal. She trips on things if the floor is not flat but gets herself right back up! She rarely bear crawls anymore, which is SAD. :( I loved that. It was so cute! 

Face and Skin: Her dry skin is starting to clear up. I don't have to put lotion on her every time I change her. She is getting bad diaper rashes and makes her VERY uncomfortable and sad. Last night she woke up just in so much pain from her rash. When it gets that bad we have to give her a bath so she does not have to feel the pain of a wipe. She has very clear skin on her face.

Affection: She gives her mommy hugs and kisses! It is the most precious thing ever when walks up to me and opens up her arms for a hug! My heart melts. She wraps her arms around me and will stay there for about 10 seconds before she wants to go and do something else. She will rest her head on my shoulder when she is tired. She has not fallen asleep on my arms in a while, but I think that is probably good she can fall asleep on her own. When I say "kisses" she opens her mouth wide and tries to kiss my mouth. We'll work on that :) When other people like her dad and grandpa try to give her kisses she puts her head down so they can kiss her on her forehead. She will stand up for herself. If a bigger baby pushes her, she'll push him/her right back. I love it.

Expressions: She will STARE at complete strangers for like a minute straight. It's so funny. She's not afraid, but she is studying their faces and tries to figure them out. She does not smile as easily as she used to, but she still is a good smiler. Now she smiles when I smile at her, and laughs really big when daddy and I play games with her and tickle her. She loves to get tickled. Especially on her neck. Dad is great at getting her to laugh. She likes to be thrown in the air and  dad is good at playing fun games with her. 

Around the house: She loves to explore the bathroom and the kitchen the most. She is very interested in the bath tub, the bathroom sink, the garbage can in the kitchen, and the kitchen cupboards where the tupperware is. She is totally ok with going in the other room without me. Sometimes we have to block of the kitchen and bathroom so we can keep a good eye on her. 

Out and About: Autumn loves going for walks and playing on the swing. Don't we all? She likes to look around and explore. It has been amazing weather and we have enjoyed getting outside when we get the chance.

We love to take Autumn to restaurants. She enjoys being out with us, and we LOVE being with her! She is so well behaved and we get lots of compliments about how cute she is. And we totally agree of course! She is just a joy and daddy loves to play with her and feed her his food.

Her cute Sunday outfit! Size 18-24 months with some room to grow.

Love her cute smile!!

We love you baby girl!!