Phew!

So last week wasn't the best for exercising.  It was just so.... hot.  And humid.  Yuck.  I do not like this weather, bring on the snow!  Even though our air conditioner is working, it just seemed to be sticky in our apartment.. and I guess I just used that as an excuse.  I didn't eat the best either.. so I ended up maintaining this week.. which is disappointing, but it's better than a gain, especially with how "bad" I was!  Saturday I went wedding dress shopping again with my friend Janelli, and we started bowling league, too.  So there were quite a few poor food decisions made.

But, I'm starting the week out right today!  I just finished my "wog".. 1.5 miles in 30 minutes!  I almost hate to admit it, but I feel pretty good after I get off the treadmill!  I can almost see why people enjoy running.  Although I wouldn't consider what I do running.. I am still very much jogging.  I am excited for it to cool down, I am thinking I'm ready to get outside and do this.. change it up a little bit.  Plus, I always wonder how my downstairs neighbors feel when I'm thundering above them.. lol.  I haven't had a complaint yet!  This week my goal is to drink more water.  I would like to start filling my water bottle in the morning, and drinking it all before lunch, and then filling it up again and drinking it all in the afternoon.  We all know water is good for us!  Plus, my dermatologist said staying hydrated will help clear my skin.  And this 26 year old will do anything to get rid of this acne!  I feel like I'm a hormonal teenager with all these spots on my face!

My trusty Bucky Badger Nalgene!  I love it.. I always chock it
full of ice.. I like my water COLD!

 I also bought some grapes and bananas this week to try to incorporate more fruit into my diet.  If I get something I like, I'll eat it!

Workout- Week 1

My new goal was to walk on my treadmill 3 times this week.  I would walk for awhile, the jog for a bit, then walk again when I couldn't jog anymore.  It went pretty well!


Day 1:

30 minutes of walking.. 1.25 miles!  I accidentally cleared
the screen before I got a final picture!

Day 2:

30 minutes.. 1.33 miles!  I must have jogged a little bit more
this time!  I found that my workout went faster when I counted up
to 30 minutes instead of down!

Day 3: I ended up not walking on my treadmill because I took my Todds out for a walk at work.  3 of them in a buggy (They're all about 18-20 months) was a workout in and of itself!  I definitely worked up a sweat (although that could be because it was dang muggy outside).

My goal again next week is 3 days of working out.. I'm hoping to throw in my Extreme Makeover Weight-Loss Edition DVD to change things up.  I LOVE this workout!

Celebration!

There's nothing like a week's vacation to get you rejuvenated and ready for another week of work!  It's nice to hear how much your co-workers miss you too! ;)
My hunny also turned the big 3-0 this week!  We were originally going to go to Milwaukee for a Brewers game and a weekend away, but we decided to save money instead.
Friday night we went to downtown La Crosse to celebrate... and I think we realized how old we both are when it comes to partying all night!

The infamous fishbowl!  You need help for those!

I got a haircut too!  It's so crazy how short it is, my hair grows
sooo fast, I probably got about 3 inches cut off too.  I also went
darker with a little bit of red and I LOOOOVE it!  I was channeling
my inner Ally Sheedy in this picture ;)  I loove headbands!

Yesterday, I had both mine and Cory's families over for a little party for him!  It ended up being my parents and sister, along with his stepdad and mom, his little brother & friend, his sister and her fiance, and his grandpa and his girlfriend!  It really made me realize how little our apartment is and was very cozy with all those people in it!  Every body had a great time though, and it was a lot of fun hosting!  I made hot dogs, brats, and burgers, and pickle dip!  Oh my gosh, it's so good.  I just chopped up some pickles, mixed it in with some cream cheese, and a little pickle juice to taste!  Cory says he could eat it with a spoon!

I am three pounds down this week!  Woo hoo!  My goal is to lose 50 lbs. by Feburary, which is 2 lbs/week. I think that is very doable, I just need to get off my butt and stick to my points!

Something's Gotta Give

So, ALL of my friends have been getting engaged lately.  I might be exaggerating a little when I say all, but I just figured out that I will have 5 weddings to attend in 2014.  I think it hit me when I was asked to be MOH in my friend Janelli's wedding and to stand up in my friend Katie's wedding (woo hoo Minnesota for allowing gay marriage!  Wisconsin, get your crap together!  I want my friends to have EVERY right that I have!)

So, now that I have motivation, I need to get this weight-loss thing going.  Who knows, my wedding might end up being next year too!  No news on that front yet, so don't get too excited!

Let today be the first day without fast food!  I will keep my countdown going and do my best not to go through the drive through!  I will cook more for the both of us.  Not only will it save money, it will save my waistline!

I also have a treadmill!  My goal now is to walk on it 3 times a week, for at least 20 minutes a day.  I need to find a good show to watch while I'm on it!  I just finished Orange is the New Black... amazing!  The last episode really left me hanging!

And.. a little internet help...?  I got a new background for my blog and can't seem how to get rid of that white space at the top.. help?

Football Friday

<div align="center">
<a href="http://www.lovefunandfootball.com/" title="Love, Fun & Fotball"><img src="http://i40.tinypic.com/2cnw7jd.png" alt="Love, Fun & Fotball" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Aaaaand. Not sure why the link isn't working. Sad day.  I so need a new layout too. lamesauce.

So, this is my very first link up!  I am soo pumped for football season.. hanging out with friends & the boy watching the game.. going out for games.. and especially the cooler weather!


My favorite team is the Green Bay Packers.. I am a cheesehead at heart!  I even worked in a local souvenir shop during college, and our #1 seller?  You guessed it, the cheesehead!  I grew up watching the Packers with my dad, and being in love with Brett Favre (yes, he broke my heart with all this retiring, un-retiring stuff).  Now I'm in love with Aaron Rodgers ;)  Oh and Jordy Nelson isn't too bad either!

My boyfriend and I recently did a photoshoot, and of course, had to represent our team!  I'm ready to kick this season off and wear my jersey every Sunday!  We're usually allowed to wear jerseys at work too, so that's always fun, especially since we're so close to the border, there's more than a few parents who are Vikings fans!

Clay Matthews and Jordy Nelson.. our favorites!

Brr.. it's cold in here!

We FINALLY have working air conditioning!  It's supposed to cool down after tonight, but I have it on just because it feels good!  And this darn humidity gets to me every time!

I cannot believe I am down to the final countdown in my summer classes!  I have an exam in each, a couple more discussion boards, and a final project and I will be done for the summer!  I have been exploring SLP graduate programs and right now, my dream would be to get into UW-Eau Claire's online Master's program that they are launching next year.  However, I won't have enough credits completed to apply this year, so will have to wait until next... which means no grad school until 2015... the beginning of a 3 year program.. providing I get in!  I am feeling pretty confident with the classes I've taken this summer, but I will see how the next 20 credits go! ;)  It's hard to think, but I'd still have my Master's shortly after I turn 30!  Cory says I worry too much about my future, but it's hard not to when there are so many options, especially with a career as an SLP!

Masha enjoys "helping" me with my homework!

I am also babysitting for a couple of my favorite daycare kids this Wednesday-Friday.  I have a hard enough time getting myself ready for work.. how am I supposed to get 2 kids ready too?  It will be an adventure for sure! ;)

July!

I feel like I pretty much need to recap the whole month of July!  I will get better at this someday!

I've been doing a ton of crocheting!  I finally made cute little tags
for my hats and maybe I'll be able to do a craft show soon!

Last weekend I went up to the Twin Cities to see my friend Kelly's beautiful new house!  I loved it.  We hit up MOA (I got some new bras at Torrid!) and then went out in downtown Anoka (which really reminded me of good ol' La Crosse!).  It was a ton of fun and MUCH cheaper than downtown Minneapolis!

Oy.. another before picture!  My friends all look amazing though! :)

The next day we hit up the outlets in Albertville.  I thought that was much more fun, and I think we may just skip MOA next time we visit and stick to some smaller malls!  It's a cool place, but it's just always so crowded and overwhelming!

It's amazing all the Packer stuff I find in Minnesota!  I really wanted
this watch but couldn't justify spending $60 on a watch that I wouldn't be able
to even wear to work!  Maybe if I had a nice desk job instead of running around
with rugrats all day! ;)

And this is really nerdy, but I got my first manicure this month too!  I'm trying really hard to stop biting my nails... and I am hoping this will help!  Sucks that when I get it taken off though, my nails will be so brittle!  Hopefully my habit will be broken by then!

I love all the comments from my friends saying how awesome some bling on that ring finger would look! ;)

Our air conditioning has been out pretty much all week and it has been SWELTERING.  I know it's not that bad and I shouldn't complain, but I have some awesome "in-laws" that have let us stay at our house.  It finally cooled down on Friday so we've had our windows open and fans going all weekend, it's pretty nice in here!
It was a bad WW week too, here's to getting back on track!

All you need is love...

All I have to say is, thank goodness coffee is zero WW points! I don't know how I would be able to survive without caffeine with some of the weeks that I've been having lately!  The weather has been awful.. rainy and humid, so we haven't been able to get outside with the kids as much as weld like, so they've been miserable too.  We're still waiting on that YoungStar visit, and everyone is sitting on the edge of their seat and nervous about how the actual rating will go.  I'm thankful they haven't come yet because I've been able to get a few touch ups done in my classroom, but on the other hand I just want them to show up and get it over with!
I just did my weekly weigh-in and I'm down 1.4 lbs this week!  It was kind of a bad week, we ended up getting Pizza Hut one night (who knew 2 slices of pizza was more than half of my daily points?!) and I went shopping with a friend yesterday and we hit up the chinese buffet.  Oy.  So, my goal for this week?  No fast food/eating out!  Pack my lunch for work everyday, and go for walks after work!  Hopefully this humid streak has snapped and I can actually walk outside and been able to breathe!  Shopping was so much fun and I spent way too much money, but Rochester (MN) has sooo much more shopping than little old La Crosse does!  I was able to go to Lane Bryant (they are having an awesome sale on their bras btw.. I walked out with 4 of them!), and they seem to have a better plus-size selection at their Maurices, too.  Someday, I will be able to shop in the "regular" section, but I did find a cute dress that will be cute for the weddings I will be attending this summer and next!
We also went to Francesca's which I thought was an adorable little store!  They had such cute random stuff! I got a frame to put our photos from the photo shoot in, plus an adorable little sign that really fits mine and Cory's relationship to a tee:

Only we have 2 furbabies :)

Photoshoot!

So waaaaay back in like April, I won a free photoshoot from Ashley Oldenburg Photography!  Cory and I finally took advantage of it on Sunday, and Ashley put a few of the pictures up today!  I'm so excited, they turned out great!  Make sure you go check out Ashley's website and her Facebook Page :)

One of my favorites!  Can you believe that's a Wal-Mart shirt?  ;)  

This bridge is on a bike trail in Onalaska... I loved it!

I loooooove my hair when it's straight!

Of course, we had to rock our Packer Jerseys!  I heart Jordy Nelson!

I was trying soooo hard not to laugh in this one!

I am hoping someday soon I'll be able to actually post engagement pictures ;)

Slacker!

Wow, so I have really been slacking on blogging!  Who knows if anyone actually reads this, but this morning I took a little time to catch up reading some of my favorite blogs!
A lot has been going on in my life lately.  I quit my part-time job at the mall so I could focus on going back to school.  I would like to apply to graduate school so I can become a Speech-Language Pathologist, and I need to take about 37 more credits before I can even think about grad school.  I am taking 2 classes this summer (Anatomy and Physiology is one of them, it's kind of kicking my butt!) and I am busy, busy, busy!  I'm still working full-time at the daycare, and we're getting ready for our YoungStar visit.. so my classroom needs to be in tip-top shape.  At least I'm getting a bunch of overtime to get ready for it! ;)

I've also opened up my Etsy shop!  Only 1 sale so far... but I've only posted hats, and I can't imagine too many people need crochet hats in the middle of June.  Hopefully business will pick up this fall!

Today was my first weigh-in since starting weight watchers again.  I weighed in at 320.5 lbs. for a weight loss of 1.6 lbs.  I am still down 5.5 pounds from my starting weight 3 months ago, so that feels pretty good.  My goal for this week is to make a good shopping list so I can cook at home this week and have left overs for us to take for lunch.  I also plan on going on walks right after work.  I have a wonderful walking trail that runs right behind our daycare center.  We always take the kids on it, so there's no reason I can't walk on it before I head home for the evening!


I am looking forward to catching up with you all!

Etsy

It's finally open... go visit my Etsy shop!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/allisondairyland

Shop to your heart's content! ;)

Slacker...

Wow... I have seriously been slacking on this whole blogging thing. Life is crazy. That is all.

Creations

Working on my latest creation... I adore this color blue.. it even matches my hook!  (I think I need a manicure)

Newborn Earflap hats.. taken from www.repeatcrafterme.com's hat pattern and tweaked to my colors :)

My Newborn Owl hat!  This is going to my friend Leah of 99 Perspectives Photography.  I can't wait to see how
the shoot turns out!  Pattern Credit: Repeat Crafter Me

Newborn flower hats for spring!

Life

So last I updated, we had finally settled into our new apartment.  However, I really feel like we've been unsettled, and haven't really gotten the chance to even enjoy it yet!  About a week and a half after we moved in, we began noticing bites all over our bodies.  Right away, we assumed it was fleas.  We had them before with the cats and they were easy to get rid of.  So, we bought our regular stuff, sprayed down all our carpets and bedding, and bought medicine for the cats.  But, when we went to treat the cats, there was not a bug on them, no flea dust or any evidence at all.  Strange, but we really didn't think much of it.

The bites continued, and they were AWFUL.  The flea bites didn't itch that bad before... so we started doing a little research, and that led us to bed bugs.  Yes.  BED BUGS.  Nasty little creatures, there were literally welts all over our bodies.  We contacted our landlord, and she pretty much told us that it was our problem, and they would do nothing about it, SINCE WE BROUGHT THEM INTO THE APARTMENT.  Uh, I think not.  We were at a total loss, and VERY upset, as we had just moved in.  Any research we found said it was extremely difficult to prove when infestations started.  So, we started gathering our resources.  We contacted the local pest control company that our landlord had suggested, and they didn't really believe that we would have a bed bug infestation, but agreed to send out an inspector.  After giving us the run around and eventually not even bothering to show up to their appointment, we called someone from the county who confirmed that it was indeed bedbugs.  He gave us a list of appropriate treatments, and we continued to contact our landlord, as the wonderful man from the county said he would tell her that he did not believe we brought them into the apartment.  We got a letter from our old landlord stating that we had never had an issue, my boss was willing to write a letter for us (because I was asked to leave work to confirm that indeed, those are lovely bedbugs bites all over my arm, and not anything contagious), when miraculously our landlord contacted us and told us that they were going to send a heat treatment crew to our apartment.  Thank goodness!  So we've been living bug-free for about a week now, let's hope this continues!  I swear to god though, if I see another bed bug, I will be arming myself with a lawyer, no matter what the cost.  I will want out of this place!

With all of the stress, I ended up unsubscribing from Weight Watchers.  I'm hoping to get going again in the next few months, but if I'm going to school and working full-time, plus a part time job, live may just get stressful again... sigh.  

My First Owl Hat

Yep, I'm tooting my own horn.  But it's adorable!

Finally...

...a moment to sit down!  Or rather, lay down!  I'm blogging from my bed, well, because I can!  After we got all moved in, this nasty GI bug started going around the daycare... all our kids were getting it.. and then all of a sudden, I got it too.  There was no way I could stay in ratio (if we have more than 4 kids in our room, there has to be  teachers) and run to the bathroom every 5 minutes!  So, I went home.. and driving home all I could think of was that scene in Bridesmaids.. I think you all know the one.

Yep. . Tmi?  Oh well... it's hilarious.

Then, a few days later, I got this nasty cold.  All of the teachers at work have been sick.. and I ended up having to go back to work one day because we didn't have enough coverage.  So luckily Friday came along and I had 2 hours of overtime to cut, so I was done by 2:30.  By that point my head was pounding and I felt like death, so I came home and fell asleep.. until 11 pm.  Oops.  I didn't think there was any way I could sleep that night, but sure enough.. 8 more hours.  I guess I needed it.  I still have a cough today.. but I am feeling 110% better.

I job shadowed another speech pathologist this week... and it was amazing!  So right now my plan is to apply to UW-Eau Claire tomorrow.. and get this undergrad degree on the way!

Another goal this week: get back on my diet... and get out there and WALK!  We have an awesome neighborhood, and some awesome places for me to walk, I'm so pumped!  Although, rumor has it we're supposed to get 9" of snow tonight.  And my boots are at the daycare.  *Sigh*

Busy!

Oh boy, have I been failing at this whole blogging thing lately!  With moving, sickness, jobs, get togethers and crazy weather, I haven't had any time lately!  And the diet has been going down hill as well well.. ugh.  Hopefully I will have a real blog soon... and catch up on reading all of yours!

Today's the day!

We're finally moving!  :D

Boxes, boxes, everywhere!

The boxes are taking over my house!  It's a good feeling to have so much stuff packed up and ready to go, but I really can't wait to get them all out of here!  And as far as I know, our apartment hasn't been shown to anyone yet, so I want to keep it looking semi-decent.

So, according to our new apartment's website, we will have a work out room!  I am pretty pumped about that!  I really love to walk, but really have a hard time doing it in weather like this.  I feel like I've been doing pretty well on my diet, so I am hoping to start focusing on the exercising soon.  I know it sounds lame, but I just really don't have time.  So I am going to keep focusing on healthier eating and then get exercising when I can.

Last night I finally got out shopping to get Valentine's for my kids, and boy, were they picked over!  Plus, it's hard to find appropriate valentine's for toddlers (my youngest is 11 months and the oldest is 2).  So, I ended up snagging the last box of heart-shaped fruit snacks.  Those are age appropriate, and I know they'll love them!

We don't have any plans for tomorrow, I work at the mall and Cory always works until 10.  Do you and your sweetie have any Valentine's plans? :)

It's the Freakin' Weekend!

This picture pretty much describes me this weekend.  It's always nice to have a whole weekend off, especially between the 2 jobs.  Yesterday, I was able to meet up with some of the girls from my old daycare and have lunch with them.  I had been doing sooo good all week with my eating, so I had a grilled chicken sandwich.  They had sooo many burgers and sandwiches that looked good, but I passed them up :)  Although I did have french fries, I figured I deserved a little treat. :)  Cory and I went to see Silver Linings Playbook last night too, it was fun to have a date night!  We were trying to remember the last movie we had seen together, but we couldn't... lol.  I feel like we're an old married couple!
This morning when I stepped on the scale, I lost 4.7 pounds this week!  It felt so good, knowing that I had really watched what I ate this week and was able to stay away from the drive-thru!  I've lost 13 pounds overall, and still going strong! :)
Today is reserved for cleaning and packing.. 3 weeks from now, we'll be in our new apartment, I can't wait!

Another week...

I was pretty proud of myself this week.  I went and talked to my boss about the negative feedback I've been getting regarding my classroom.  It's just really hard when you think you're doing your best.. and all anyone has to say is negative.  So I told her I would appreciate a little more positive feedback.. because come on, you need to hear that!  EVERYONE needs to know they're doing something right.  Even if it's just my interactions with the kids (which I think is THE most important aspect of childcare, not lesson plans and observations).

I had a rough week foodwise.  The weather was bad, we're low on groceries, whatever excuse I can give... I hit up the drive thru twice.  So after that, I've been watching what I eat more carefully and tracking my points to get back on track.  All I have to say is THANK GOD coffee is 0 points! ;)

I've been having weird back pains this week too.  Not sure if it's actually my back, or digestive, or even feminine problems.  If it's not better after this weekend, I will be going in to walk-in are, because I can hardly walk and some points in the day.  It's worse when I am up and down all the time with the kids.


I am so excited, my bestie is coming down from Rochester today!  We've been friends since she moved to little ol' Fennimore in Elementary School, we lived in the same college town together, and now she's working at Big Bad Mayo Clinic in Rochester and enjoying being a newlywed!  Her wedding was such an awesome time, but I have to say, there are some mighty good BEFORE pictures of me that showed up in her album!

My favorite picture from the wedding.. guess us girls aren't as strong
as we thought!

Have an amazing weekend everyone!

Frustration.

I get so frustrated with myself sometimes.  I was so excited last week when I lost 2 more pounds, for a total of 11 overall.  So, why have I gone to McDonald's twice this week, and had way more food than I should have?  I feel like I don't have any self control, and it drives me crazy.  Maybe it's just not my time to lose weight.  I go in waves.  I get so pumped about eating healthy and exercising.. then the next week I'm down and back to right where I was.



Blah.  That is all.

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

.. now I just wish I had a delightful fire in our place!  The forecast here is pretty nasty.. 2-4" of snow and then ice on top of that.  It just started snowing, so we will see what pans out.

This week was extremely long.  I got some tough criticism at work (I feel like it was not "constructive" at all), and I felt like doing my best wasn't enough, and everyone was criticizing everything that I did.  But I guess you will have situations like that at any job you have.  I really do love what I do, I can't get enough of the kids, I just get the feeling it's time for me to move on from daycare.  I am hoping to job shadow some speech therapists in the upcoming weeks, so I can know if it's something that I really want to do, and hopefully can start taking classes this summer.  So we will see what the next few months bring!

I am down 11 pounds!  Tomorrow marks 3 months of Weight Watchers, and although I haven't lost quite as much as I would have liked, I am going to continue and keep pushing myself.  I think our new apartment has a gym in the complex, so I am looking forward to that.  I'm a weenie when it comes to the cold, so the more I can exercise inside, the better!  We are SO looking forward to moving.. I'm just a little excited ;)  Hopefully we will go sign our lease soon, and we will be good to go! :)

Nothing Like Saturday Morning...

... and a big cup of coffee!  What a week it's been!  It really seemed like it was never going to end.  Yesterday was a super long day... and to top it all off, I pulled the sprayer prank on myself at work... lol.  One of our sanitizing bottles fell down on the sink while I was changing a diaper.. and without even realizing it, it was holding down the handle of the hand-held sprayer on the sink.  Well, when I went to wash my hands, I got quite the surprise when I was soaked with ice cold water.  And of course, it's an automatic sink and since I was standing there, it kept spraying.  Oy.  I was able to soak up most of the water with a towel, but I was still pretty wet for the rest of the day.
I don't know if other states have this (or if any of you work in child care), but we're getting ready for re-licensing and a YoungStar visit.  Basically, it's a star system that rates daycares.  We're a 4 star, and only one other daycare in the city of La Crosse is a 5 star.  So, everyone is in crazy mode trying to get everything ready.. Portfolios, lesson plans, room arrangements.. it's nuts.  Plus, not having much time to work on it puts even more on everyone.  We get in trouble if we bring stuff home to work on, which duh, we're going to do anyway, but as I'm sure you all know, it's illegal to work off the clock.  I love it though, some of my coworkers think we should push to be salaried employees so we won't have to worry about the whole 40 hours a week thing.  I'll believe that when I see that, since we're not really considered teachers in the eyes of anyone.. just glorified babysitters, which is upsetting sometimes.

Oh, and more good news!  Cory and I are finally moving!  After about 7 bats in the house this summer, we started an apartment hunt.  It didn't go so well, since you really can't move without a security deposit.  However, I found that one of the apartments we really liked was having a move-in special, so we only had to pay $400 down, and we get $500 off first month's rent!  I was so excited.  I've been wanting to move out since the day I moved in, and we've been here almost a year and a half.   We're moving March 1st, so I'm hoping to have some pictures someday soon!

Happy Weekend!

Busy Busy!

I wanted to share some of the crafty things I've been doing lately!  I've been doing a lot of crocheting, and this year I am hoping to open an etsy shop with my mom.  I have a few hats and things stocked up, but have been doing a lot of custom orders lately (hence the 11 pairs of slippers!).

For Christmas, I wanted to make something for my little cousins.  I just finished them last week, and now I am slacking on shipping them.  Tomorrow I will get them shipped!  I have them in the envelopes and all ready to go, just have to get my butt to the post office!

For my cousin Skyler, she has a black and pink coat.

For my cousin Gianna, perfect Wisconsin and Redbird colors!

And for Gianna's big sister, Emma!  :)

And for Kase, a Badger hat for a little man! 

And Kyla.. she just turned two!

The last two hats are for my cousin Amy's kids.  They are too stinking cute :)  I hope they love them!

2013!

Bring it on 2013!  This will be my year!  I am going to continue with WW, since I've had success with it, and WILL start exercising.  I haven't quite decided yet if I want to join a gym, but right now I am thinking about just throwing it all in and getting a personal trainer.  If I'm going to make a difference, I want to make a big one, and throw all my chips in.  Right now money is kind of the big deciding factor, so I'm still trying to decide if I can still fit that into my budget.

I'm in desperate need of jeans... and I feel like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.  I am almost in a size 24, and it's driving me bonkers!  SO many of the pairs that I have tried on ALMOST fit... but I wouldn't be able to wear them if I bought them.  Working retail, I see so many women buy clothes that don't fit them, with the hopes that they will fit in them someday soon.  I just can't bring myself to do that, I need ones that fit me now.  It's so embarrassing to sit down and have your jeans rip!  I have so many pairs too that used to fit.. and I'm saving hoping that I will fit into them in the next few months.

I returned quite a few pairs of jeans to JCP last night, $115 worth.  Yes, I'm that person, who orders a ton online and returns in the store.  And working retail, you'd think I know better!  But when so many stores are shrinking or completely cutting out their plus size sections, it's hard!  Oh well, all the more reason for a new me :)