I can hear some of you screaming now. I know I know.

I think that in the blogging world you have a lot of people who like WordPress and a lot of people who love Blogger. I am on the side that likes Blogger.

For a couple reasons.

For one Blogger is free. I know that WordPress isn’t that expensive but it’s not free either.

I know how to design for Blogger. I love playing around with my blog design and often change it. It is much easier for me to do this with Blogger.

Sidebars. I love having pretty sidebars. And with WordPress I find this tricky. I hate having to install plugins which may or may not even work. With Blogger it is so much easier to just add gadgets and place them where you like.

So I am in the midst of transferring over my post and setting up my new site. After I get everything moved I will be cancelling my hosting renewal and eventually Two Men and a Mommy will be no more.

Please come check me out at my new site -

Simple Life of a Housewife

I am debating transferring over my tutorials because I want to start new. New tutorials with the new blogger interface. Designing for the new interface is really easy and I would love to teach y’all how to design with it.

I will be doing my blogging over there starting today. When I get back from the doctor with my son I will be posting my Week Three picture and about how this week has gone.

I also will be adding my buttons, sponsors, and other fun stuff to my sidebar.

Thanks for being patient through my move : ) And I will see ya on the other site…

Passionfruit is a great way to manage your sponsors. It keeps track of how long each button stays on your blog, the cost (if you charge) for the space, and what size buttons go where.

So now I am going to teach you how to add Passionfruit to your blog.

1.) Sign up for a Passionfruit account.

2.) Once you have a Passionfruit account you will need to pick which blog you are working with. Some people have multiple blogs and this is the reason for this. You will go up to the Nav Bar on the top of the site and click on My Sites and then pick the blog you are working with.

3.) You will be taken to a page that shows an overview of your blog and ad spaces.

4.) Now we need to define your ad spaces. So click on Site Setup and Define Ad Spots.

5.) As you can see I have only one option for sponsors and that is button swaps.

6.) Now what you are going to do is define your ad spot.

7.) Click on Add a spot in the bottom left hand corner.

8.)  Now lets fill out this page.

Spot Label - Are you doing a button swap, a giveaway spot, a medium spot, large spot…. the choice is yours

About - This is where you sell your spot. Why should bloggers sponsor your blog? Are you going to do Twitter shout outs? Group giveaways? And if you are       doing button swaps you will enter your promo code here (we will get to that later).

Width/Height - What size buttons will be used for this ad? (150×150, 200×100)….

Opening - How many buttons to you accept each month?

Shown at a time - How many buttons will be shown on your blog at a time?

Duration - How long will each button stay on your blog?

Shuffle - Do you want your ads to rotate? That way each of your ads have the chance for best visibility? I suggest that you do do this : )

Total Price - How much will you charge for this ad? If this is a button swap put in $1 and we will do the promo code in the next couple steps.

Passionfruit Fees - Passionfruit takes a percentage of each ad that you charge for. You will not be charged if you are doing button swaps with a coupon code.

Your Payout - The amount of money you would make off of an ad after Passionfruit takes its fee.

9.) Once you are done click on Save Ad Spot. Your spot should show up on the next page.

10.) Now lets create a promo code for your swappers. Click on Site Setup and Promo codes.

11.) This is what my promo page looks like. I already have a promo code for swappers called SWAP (I know. So original). You can create more than one promo code at once. You might want to go a swap code, a giveaway code (you give to winners of giveaways for ad spots), or a percent off if you charge.

12.) Now lets create a promo code for swapping buttons. Click on Add a promo code.

13.) Now lets fill in this page.

Promo code - What will your promo code be? You can do Swap, Sponsor, or something to do with your blog like TWOMEN. Whatever you want.

Description - This is just for you to remember what the code is being used for.

Applies to - Which ad spot will this promo code be used for? If you have multiple ad spots you might only want to use this code for a specific spot.

Now decided how much the code is for. If it is for a free button swap this would be 100%. And how many times can this be used?

When you are done click on Save

14.) Your promo code should now appear like this

15.) Now we need to add this promo code in the description of your ad space.

16.) Click on Site Setup and Define Ad Spots like we did above.

17.) You are going to edit the space where you want this code used.

18.) In the about section I am going to add the Promo Code. That way when people go to sponsor my blog they have the code to get their space for free.

19.) Once that is done I am going to scroll down and click on Save ad spot.

20.) Now we need to add some coding to our blogs. We add the code so that when someone sponsors our blog their button will show up on our sidebar.

21.) Click on Site Setup and Installation & display

22.) Each ad spot will have its own code. That way if you want to put your featured ads on the top of your blog and your swaps in the middle you can do that. Or you might want to put some ads on the left sidebar and other ads on the right.

23.) Copy the code that you want to use and we are going to paste it onto your blog.

24.) In another tab open your blogs dashboard. I am working in WordPress now but you can also do this in Blogger.

25.) Go to your widget dashboard and pick the Text or HTML option. Place it on your sidebar where you want your ads to show.

26.) Now paste that code into this widget.

27.) Now Save and you are done. Remember that you probably won’t see any change on your blog until you start getting sponsors. If you want to test it out just email me at lindsayintx@gmail.com and I will submit my button to sponsor your blog and we can see if it works.

Oh!

I almost forgot to show you how to ad your Passionfruit store to your blog. This will feature your spots that are available for sponsorship. This is also where you will ad your stats for your blog and whatever else you think might help  potential sponsors.

28.) I am going to create a new page in WordPress.

29.) Now go back to your Passionfruit tab and we are going to grab more code.

30.) Click on Site Setup and Installation & display again.

31.) Now you are going to copy the Your Ad Shop code

32.) Now paste that code into your new page on WordPress. Make your you post the code into the HTML section and DO NOT switch over to preview because for some reason it changes the code. Weird I know. If you save and for some reason it doesn’t work just delete the page and start again.

33.) Now I am going to save and preview.

34.) This is what my Sponsor page looks like

35.) This is where bloggers who want to sponsor your blog will come to submit their buttons. This is where they read the description of how each ad space is used and decide which option works best for them.

36.) I am going to save this page and now it will show up on my nav bar.

Phew! That was a long tutorial : ) But I hope it helps you use Passionfruit and understand sponsors better. If you have any questions please email me at lindsayintx@gmail.com and I would love to help!

And why don’t you just add your button to my blog through Passionfruit now that you are a pro at it!

I guess because of that I keep wondering when the ball will drop. When will I fall off the wagon? When will the craving overtake the motivation and become an everyday thing again?

I think I am actually a little obsessed with working out and eating right. I force myself some days to go to the gym even though I haven’t missed but one day in a week and could take a day off.  I feel beyond guilty if I just go over my calories a little. I think it’s because I am scared that if I do it once I will keep doing it and find myself at the beginning again. What happens if I have a bad day? Will I be able to just start over the next day? Or will I just be so overwhelmed at the thought of failure that I decide to skip just one more day. And then another. And then another…

I would love to say that this time I know for sure that I will keep up with my diet. I would love to say that I will never have to start over again because I won’t stop in the first place. And I do honestly think that this time around things are different.  I am not really sure why but I guess my desire to get back in shape trumps the cravings and the couch.

And because I know that it is my choice whether or not I get back in shape. I know that if I stick to it I will eventually see results. That the clothes in my closet that I can’t fit into now I will be able to wear in a couple of months. I know that it is my decision to either sit on the couch or go to the Y. And I know that I need to find a balance between working out and giving my body a break.

Right now I am just trying to stay focused on one day at a time. One meal at a time.

But I CAN and WILL do this. I love this picture that I found on Pinterest and now it the screen saver on my phone. It reminds me that I can do this as long as I stick to it.

This week the biggest thing I have learned is compromising with my diet. Thursday night I really wanted some ice cream but had already had my calories for the day. So instead I had two Oreos. The Oreos still put me over but not as much as a bowl of ice cream would have. I am happy that even in a week I have been able to discipline myself to stay away from sweets. It’s not perfect yet but much better than what I was doing before.

Today I had a cheat day. Because it’s my birthday! Calories don’t count when it’s your birthday. I do feel a tad bit guilty about it and hope that I didn’t ruin a full weeks worth of working out but it’s done and all I can do is restart tomorrow.

This week my goal is to stay on track with calories and go the full week without going over. I also want to cut down to one soda a day. I tried to stay at only two a day this last week and for the most part I did. Soda is another thing that I have issues with. I would much rather have soda or tea instead of water. But I must admit that the more I work out the more I crave water. I don’t know if that is just in my mind or because it is what my body needs. Either way it’s a good thing.

When I first started working out at the Y I would watch The View because it helped make time go by faster. But I have found that music is so much easier to focus on. Instead of focusing on the forty-five minutes I have ahead of me I just focus on one song at a time. I go as fast as I can during that one song and before I know it it’s over. I like songs that have good beats so I can move to the rhythm and keep my pace up.

Here is my play list. I am only slightly embarrassed that Justin Bieber is on this playlist but whatever. And Kesha is on there too which now reminds me of Teen Mom 2 (I got all these feathers in my hair). If you watch you know what I am talking about.

Anyways. What do you do while working out? I have seen people reading and I don’t know how they do it with all the up and down motion. And I have seen people who don’t listen to music or watch anything and I would just get so bored. Do you listen to music? Have any music suggestions for me?

(Some of these songs may have cuss words. Just a warning.)

This week I have just tried to focus on making sure I do good workouts, drinking my water, and staying on track with calories. I haven’t weighed myself yet but that is okay. I never have liked going by the numbers but instead have always gone by how my pants feel. If they are too tight I know I need to watch a little better but if they are loose I know what I am doing is working. I will be weighing myself starting Thursday. I am not sure why I have picked Thursday but it seemed like a good day.

Tomorrow I am going to go to my first yoga class in years. I did yoga before I had Ryan and miss it so much. I took yoga at 24 hour fitness and it was awesome. I haven’t taken it at the Y yet but I am sure it is just as good. I figure after so many days of hard work outs I deserve to just take a more relaxed class. I think I have to give my legs a break otherwise they may start protesting on me.

And because it’s my birthday I have decided that I am going to buy myself this yoga mat from Target : )

On Wednesday I renewed my membership to the YMCA and am over the moon excited about it! I love the atmosphere at the Y and could stay there all day and just hang out. I love the little TV’s they have on each machine. I get there about the time the View comes on and work out while watching it. Makes the time go by much faster. I love that they have a heated indoor swimming pool that I can take Ryan to on the weekends. And I love their Fit system. You log into a computer system and it keeps track of all the calories burned and weight reps you do. Each machine has a place you put your pin in and it syncs with their computer so it doesn’t matter which machine you work on or if you work on multiple ones in one work out. You can also add it manually like if you take a class or work out at your house. It’s awesome.

(You would think I am being paid for this post but I am totally not. I just REALLY REALLY love the Y.)

I gained most of my weight while I was pregnant with Ryan and just never focused on getting it back off. I have been so busy being a mom that I just put myself on the back burner. Lame excuse but it’s true.

I was only one hundred pounds in high school and I miss those days of being able to eat everything in front of me without gaining a pound. I could literally eat more than anyone around me and not think twice about it. Portion control is something I am having to learn on a daily basis.

Since October I have been trying to really focus on my diet. I have been drinking more water, watching my sweets, and cutting my portions in half. And I hate drinking water. I would much rather drink chick fil-a tea or soda but those are diet killers. And sweets. Oh, how I love my sweets. Chocolate, ice cream, M&M’s, cake, cupcakes, cupcakes and ice cream on one plate. Yeah, I have issues with sweets.

I have limited myself to one sweet a day and so far so good. Some days it isn’t easy but I know in the long run it will be so worth it.

And one more thing I hate? Is having pictures taken of me. In all reality I am not unhappy with the way that I look. Maybe it’s because my husband (an awesome man) tells me I am beautiful all the time and I believe him. But for some reason I cringe when I see myself in pictures. I mean seriously I will run from a camera. I know that it’s really over dramatic but if you knew me you wouldn’t be surprised at all.

But I have decided that I am going to take a picture every Thursday and post about it on here until I am at my goal weight. I want to be able to look back and see my progress and how the hard work paid off. I also think by posting about it I will feel more accountable to myself. To stay on track this time and not diet for a week and go back to old habits. I will also be posting other things throughout the week. The good, the bad, and the ugly. (I will also still be posting about crafts and stuff too so don’t worry.)

So here is to the first week. I know I shouldn’t have used the flash in the first picture and thought I had taken another without it but didn’t. I hope you don’t cringe at this picture but so what if you do.

(Oh, and don’t you love my pink shoes?? They are one of my favorite things in the world).

So what are some tips you can give me to keep me motivated and away from the sweets? I will take all the help I can get : )

I separated them in a couple different sections hoping that it would be easier for people who are following.

My first three boards are for my blog. What I’ve written. What I’ve made. And tutorials or crafts that I want to do and post about.

Next came holidays. I love decorating and planning for the next holiday so each one has its own board.

Then it’s each room in our house. We just moved in last February and are still trying to furnish and decorate. I love getting ideas and being able to look at my boards when I am out shopping. This came in really handy when I was going for a Texas theme for the guest room. I also love all the organization ideas. We have a lot of closets in this house and it’s nice to get ideas so they look nice.

After homey boards I have crafts. The crafts are separated – cardboard crafts, letters, jewelry, and random. The random crafts are just crafts that don’t fix onto any other board.

And then just random boards. I tried to organize them (colors for my blog, scrapbooks for blog design, fonts, blogging) as best I could but some just don’t fit with any other board.

Maybe I am being too OCD about this but whatever. I like it better when it’s organized : ) And it really does make things easier when I am searching for a certain craft or pin.

I even made a couple new boards. I am going to start doing the crafts I see on Pinterest and blogging about it. So I made a To Do! board. These are crafts you will be seeing on the blog in the upcoming weeks. I love crafting but often am working on so many at a time it gets overwhelming. So I figured I would take one a week and keep a little bit more of my sanity.

Please go check out my hard work and follow me on Pinterest if you haven’t already. Then leave me a comment letting me know so I can follow you back!

Do you organize your Pinterest boards? If so how do you organize them?