Family and Friends

It is time to move forward with our family and friends. I am really going to try to post our good times so that we will always know that no matter what we are always provided for.

We have had so much love....here are a few of my favorites.

Starting New

I am pretty sure I have lost most of the readers I had for this blog and my personal one. I know I do have family who has been wondering if I would start this back up again. So here I am. Single, happy, and moving forward with my new book. 

One of my last posts described the start of some stress that I was dealing with. I thought I was done with it back then....turns out I wasn't. I was in for a lot more. Two years later, it is time to rediscover and build a new me. I have been taking care of life...the kids....and I have fallen into some old nasty habits again. So I have decided to see what I can do on my own. I have to put my health as a priority. I have two amazing kids that I have to stay strong and healthy for. Below are a couple of my pictures at my lowest weight. My first goal is to reach this again....the healthy way. (as opposed to not eating because of stress).

The below picture is a great picture of my nephew....but shows that I have allowed myself  to fall. So today I choose me. Today I choose a healthy me.

New Clothes

A good friend of mine said it was time to get out of the sweatshirt and Jeans. We went out for girls night and she informed me that we were going shopping and bought me this dress. I have to say, it has been a while since I have looked at myself in the mirror. I didn't know who I was looking at. I  bought a couple more things I'll show off later. The kids and I are going to have a mellow weekend. CO is here so we have spiritual activities and some fun planned. I am looking forward to it!

Still Losing

Since this shot I have lost 20lbs

 

Kind of liked my shadow....the sun was at right angle. :)

 

The reason for my current weight loss is not because of gym or eating right. It is because of stress. Most of the people who read this know what I am going through right now. I dont have a lot of visitors here so it is a little easier to discuss. I have decided that it is time to come out of my box and share my progress again. So as the next few weeks progress and I start firming up at the gym I will share more. Since the end of July I have lost almost 35lbs I am a solid size 14 almost 12. I am 25lbs from my goal weight. My end game is now to firm up and exercise so that I can keep it off. I am eating again and unfortunately have gotten into some bad habits. Lots of comfort food is what I could choke down once a day. I am sure now, that I need to go back to the healthy stuff. Hopefully things will improve from here! I will be back more often!

District Convention

Well its that time again. New dress, new attitude. :) I  am not pleased with where I am at. Big legs and arms now. However that being said, I am happier than I would have been 15 lbs ago. Yes I am another 5.2lbs down in the last 2weeks. I have not been eating a whole lot, but things are on the mend. So now that the weight is coming off and the stress is calming a tiny bit, I have got to increase the physical activity as well. I have learned that food wont fix things. Now I need to remember that activity can. Running, walking, and biking are my focus for a while. I have a friend in my congregation who is a personal trainer. She is setting up some workouts for me to do at home so I can get started on a routine. I keep saying that I'm going to do something and then get caught up in whats going on with me or around me. I wait for something that isn't going to happen. I did this on my own before. I need to do it on my own again. I have support from family and friends...but ultimately the work is mine to do on my own.

District Convention 2012

Another year another great convention. We always look forward to this and then it seems to go by so fast. The talks this year were so comforting and made me realize that whatever you are going through at the time, Jehovah knows what you need. It also made me realize that drawing close to him will make things  more tolerable!

Spencer was an awesome note taker this year. He really focused on what the speakers were saying and was quite proud of himself for the lack of doodling. Audrey had a special notebook this year and while there was some doodling there was a lot of scriptures and notes as well.

As always we enjoyed some family time as well!

Lean on me

I hit the 10lb mark this weekend! Yay!!!!! I have another15 to hit my lowest but hey....whose counting. I have learned these last couple weeks that my body will tell me when I'm hungry and sometimes I can tell my body to shut up. :) My portion sizes have been next to nothing, I've been eating to survive. Yes Ive been a little stressed. What can you say, its going to happen. Sometimes life throws you a curve ball and all you can do is catch it and throw it back. I believe, finally, that I threw it back yesterday......we will see...
 Normally I would call myself a stress eater. I eat when I'm out of control. Usually stress lasts for a couple days and  I might gain 3 to 4 lbs. This has been going on for a couple months now. Really intense for the past several weeks and when I reach for the candy or the burger or the chips, they taste like sawdust. I realize a couple bites in that it is not fixing the problem so I stop eating. I have been drinking a lot of diet soda, probably not the greatest filler. But oh well. I guess what I'm saying is that stress, this time was good for me. I have a new understanding with food. I have a new happy place. walking...or running.....or biking.
 Stress sucks. It sucks and I have generally avoided it at all costs. That couldn't happen this time. It was a way to close for comfort. I always thought I was the layed back sort of girl. The girl who would always be there for others, but when it comes to me, deal with it on my own. I have discovered that the reason we have friends is to build each other up. It is comforting to know that there are different levels of friendship, and sometimes when crap flies the ones that you have taken so long to build up will be there when you need them the most. I have learned that when you need help, people cant guess. You have to ask for it. It is important to be receptive to what your people are going through, because sometimes asking for help just is not in your vocabulary. I appreciate the friends I have even more this week than last. I am grateful for those who know me well enough to say, come on lets talk. I have always relied on family for that, and right now I have many champions in my corner and I know I have many more if and when I need them. Family who are near and far. My mother, who is not always the best at dealing with stress, has taken the ball and run with it this time, I don't usually turn to her for help. She has been my biggest champion. My sister who has tried to make me laugh, even though she doesn't know the situation, and my close friend who just sent me a text that said lets talk, I'm worried. All of this support got me through a tough one. I'm not all the way there yet, but I am gonna be. And it wasn't food that got me there....