Florabella & THEIT Camera Bag Giveaway!

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Dear God

Dear God,

I just wanted to let you know that I have NOT forgotton about my promise to learn more about you this year.  I truly DO want to know you better and strengthen my relationship.  I know my efforts on Sunday mornings are just a start and I can do better.  I don't want to go to church to be fed.  It's time for me to give back and I know this.  I can sit here and come up with a dozen excuses, but the bottom line is I need to be engaged.  I want to know your story, your words and I want to know YOU.

I'm still here Lord & I am always thinking of you!

Reflecting on our first 6 Months

Vivien is officially sitting up and today she spent most of her morning sitting like a big girl.  It finally hit me today that I have a six month old!  I still can't believe I've spent six months raising my daughter. 

It feels like yesterday we brought her home and I felt overwhelmed and a little afraid of what was to come.  I'm a pretty confident person but holding your child and realizing she's your responsibility was pretty scary those first few days. 

In six months, Vivien has evolved into this tiny little human growing before my eyes.  Each day she suprises me with something new.  Her personality is completely unique and nothing I really expected.

I love how serious she can be and then suddenly give you a pretty smile.  I love how focused she is when there is something in her path she wants.  I love how happy she is in the morning and how she kicks her feet with excitement when she sees me.  I think its funny how she isn't the biggest cuddler.  She won't rest her head on my shoulder unless she's completely exhausted.  She prefers to sit as upright as possible so she can see all of her surroundings.  It doesn't matter what we're doing together, she's happy as long as I'm keeping her involved.  Whether that's playing peek-a-boo when I'm in the shower and she's watching me in her car seat, or how she likes to sit in the kitchen and watch me cook and dance at the same time.  She even likes to watch me blow dry my hair and put my makeup on.  She's constantly studying my expressions and every move like she's taking it all in. 

Together her and I are taking it all in.  In six months, I feel so much more confident as a mother and even though I haven't "figured it out", I know that we'll figure it out together.  I know she's going to continue to grow in her own special personality and I'll be right by her side to embrace all of her.

I Cheated.

Yes, I am guilty of cheating.  I not only cheated on my workouts, my diet,  but I cheated myself.  I can't even count how many times we ate out this past week and I gave up on keeping track.  Mostly because I was disgusted with it and tried to ignore it.

There is no doubt that losing weight is definetly a challenge. Actually it's more like excruciating!  This past week I found myself at my all time low.  I actually felt very hopeless and told Lance "I'd be fat forever"!  I keep telling myself to push through it but the little voices in my head are telling me to give up.  I noticed less participation from the other challengers, so I think we are all going through the same thing. 

How can we help motivate eachother? What will help us get through our weakest moments? 

Even though I cheated myself and I gave into temptation, I'm not giving up.  Last week is the past and I just have to stay on track.  I'm taking this day by day. 

With all that being said, of course I dreaded the scale and figured I might find myself back to 153.  Thank God I was only punished with a one pound gain.  That pound is NOT going to stick around for long.  My goal for Week 6 148.2!

WEEK 5 WEIGH IN:  150.2

Week 4: Good Bye 150's!!!

I've broke the 150 barrier! Not by much, but I'll take it and I have no plans on looking back!

Week 4 Weigh In:

149.2

The weight isn't coming off as fast as I'd like, but it's coming off and that's all that matters. This morning I was happy with my results. I lost 2 more lbs since last week so that's 4lbs in 2 weeks. I am VERY proud of myself for that. I think that's a healthy consistent loss and I haven't been killing myself in the gym. I've just been consistent with my eating habits and portion sizes. I can totally keep this up too!

Mama's Spoil Their Babies!

I can't thank my parents enough for being such a huge part of Vivien's life.  We're all very lucky to have both our parents so involved and wanting to care for her.  These past few days I have been so spoiled by my mother.  I guess Mama's never stop spoiling there babies!

Since my dad has been sick, she's refused to let me take Vivien to her house and has been staying with Lance and I.  If anyone knows my parents personally, then they know how awesome they are.  My mom and I actually have a great relationship and always have.  So having her stay with me is a breeze, but I feel bad because she goes above and beyond! 

Here's a snapshot of what its like having Mom around:

• Hourly emails/text messages on what Vivien has been up to:  eating, sleeping, pooping, playing, etc.
• She finds time to sweep and vacuum, clean my bathrooms, & makes the bed!
• Makes dinner and snacks for Lance and I (last night she whipped up some deviled eggs)
• Last night she helped me make Vivien's baby food for the week.

By the end of my spoiled week, her and I kicked back with a glass of wine and some dark chocolate and watched Sex & The City.  How freakin lucky am I?  It doesn't get any better than this unless you have a live in nanny.  My bestfriend (who is preggers) is considering a live in nanny and at first I thought the idea was a little strange, but now I am totally in agreeance!

• She won't have to fight traffic in the morning to drop of her baby [insert screaming, tired child in carseat]
• She doesn't have to worry about the sick kids and strangers in a daycare. 
• She can drive straight home from work and her baby will be waiting for her with open arms
• A live in Nanny can help clean and prep dinner
• Baby gets personal attention instead of several babies being cared for

If you can afford it, then a nanny is the way to go!  Of course, I recommend references only, a thorough background check and a nanny cam installed.

Wednesday Weigh In: Week 3

I'm a little dissapointed my weight isn't dropping faster but I'm pushing through it!  I know results just don't happen overnight. 

This week's weigh in:

151.2 lbs



I don't want to sound like I'm complaining because any weight loss is good weight loss, but the competitiveness in me wants to step this up some more.  This week I've been sooo tired!  So this morning was my first workout and I ran for 30 minutes.  I don't know why I've been so tired.  My entire body has ached and I wake up feeling like I could sleep another ten hours!  I thought maybe I was getting sick but I don't feel sick.  This morning I was putting my gym clothes on and the hubs says "Where are you going?" and I tell him "I'm struggling, but I'm going to the gym.  I'm just so tired." and my wonderful, encouragin husband says "Well, don't go and come back to bed."  Really Lance?!!  I am already having a battle with the little devil on my shoulder telling me to sleep, I don't need you to join in!  I ignored him and left the house.  I'm glad I did because I felt great after my run.  I know it always makes my entire day feel better too.  I'm planning a healthy meal for me and Jessica tonight (other competitor).  She's in town for training and she'll be staying at my house.  I'm excited for our little sleep over! 

Motivation Monday

I'd like to share a story about my friend Claudia for Motivation Monday.  I'm so proud of her and want to follow in her footsteps.  Now, I hate to say that any of my friends are "over weight" but let's just say Claudia had similar goals to lose weight.  She's like me...she has curves and is athletic.  She's been trying to lose weight most of her adult life and finally made a life change.  She's eating right and works out consistently.  I don't know how much weight she lost exactly, but I know she went down several dress sizes!   I recently emailed her to let her know I'm very happy for her and asked for some encouraging words.  This is what she shared:

Delayna:

The best advice I can give you is to take it day by day! Fully COMMITT and never settle for anything less! I tell anyone who makes this life change....DON’T STOP! DONT GIVE UP if you don’t see immediate changes. I use to hang a pair of size 4 jeans up and every morning I would look at them. Every month I would try them on and I kept getting closer and closer to my goal. Girl believe me...they didn’t even go up my hips but they day I put those suckers on it was an absolutely amazing feeling of accomplishment.



So…some words of advice and to remember during your journey:


- Take measurements and pictures, you want to be able to see your success the scale doesn’t always give you the true story.


- A craving is just a craving...eat something healthy and it will go away.


- Don't cheat it will just put you behind by 7 days! Seriously! You don’t want all your good workouts to be ruined by a simple craving!


- You get the best workouts when you are tired! You push yourself and muscles even more! Once it over, it’s over and you completed one more workout!


- Stick with it and you will get results!

Thank you Claud for the encouraging words!!

In Need of a Little Guidance

Yesterday we celebrated Vivien's Baptism.  Our minister did a great job explaining why we celebrate God's love and what it means to dedicate her to our Lord.  I grew up as an "occassional" church goer.  That basically means we celebrated God on special occassions only.  I never really felt close to God until I fell in love with Lance.  I honestly felt that through his faith he brought me closer to God.  I've tried reading the Bible as an adult on my spare time and I go through cycles where I'll read it for a few weeks and forget about it (for months!).  One of my goals for this year is to step up my committment to God.  Especially now since I have Vivien I want to raise her with strong religious beliefs and for her to be able to connect with God at any time in her life.  In order to do that, I need to teach her by showing her the way. 

So, I signed up for my first Women's Bible Study group.  This is a big step for me because I'm not open with my religous views and open discussions have always made me feel a little uncomfortable.  I'm hoping this group will help break that barrier and I can finally express more of my feelings.  The group meets every Wednesday morning and they have daycare available for Vivien while I attend.  The Study Guide is over "Lord, I want to Know You" By Kay Arthur.  I think the title of the guide is exactly what I want to accomplish!  So wish me luck and pray I find what I'm looking for.

I love Grandparents

I love Grandparents! I don't know why we couldn't stop cracking up with this. My parents could NOT figure out how to say Lance's Dad's "grandpa name" which is "Paw-Paw". It took a few days for my mom to finally get it. And I think if I ask her again next week she will probably get it wrong again!

Week 2 Blues

It's time for our Wednesday weigh in and I was actually looking forward to my weigh in.  Afterall, I worked out more last week than I had since before I was pregnant AND I was eating healthier.  The last time I got on the scale was Friday and I weighed 150 lbs.  It turns out I was coming down with a cold over the weekend and that's why I weighed three pounds lighter!  I got on the scale this morning and was extremely dissapointed with my weight.  My dissapointment caused me to rush to the gym and start sprinting.  After my workout, I came back to do my measurements.  This is where I noticed the difference!  The first photo is last week's waist measurement at 38" and today's waist measurement came in at 35"!!!  So I've actually lost 3 inches from my waist!  Week II wasn't so bad afterall!

WEEK 2 WEIGH IN:  153.2 LBS



 Here's a list of some major changes since this competition:

• NO more peppermint mochas, white chocolate mocha's, etc.  Sticking to tall coffee w/ non fat milk for only 44 calories!
• NO soda or juice whatsoever!  It's strictly water or "Sassy" Water (Lemon, Cucumbers, Mint Leaves)
• Atleast three workouts a week with weight training and cardio
• NO more late night snacks like cereal, ice cream or chips.  Out of sight...Out of Mind! I won't bring any of that junk in the house!
• Packing my lunch for work and healthy snacks (pears, tuna, grapes, etc)

Next week I'm going to step up my workouts and see how that helps.  I'm hoping my weight stayed the same because I've been lifting weights. 

I'm looking forward to seeing how my other lovely ladies are doing on their weight loss!  Together we can get this done!!

My Baby Llama

My precious little V is almost 5 months old.  I love spending every minute with her but by far our evening routine is the best.  Being at work all day and not seeing her until 7:00 PM at night is the worst.  I constantly look at her photos, get updates from my parents and talk about her at work.  I can't help it...my little one is connected to my heart and soul. 

So when I finally get home, I spend every minute with her before I put her to sleep.  Our evenings start off with a little playtime on the floor laughing and being silly.  Then we do bath time and she splashes around for about ten to fifteen minutes.  After her bath she gets a massage while I sing to her and put her in her pajamas.  I hold her and sway with her for another 5-10 minutes (because I can't stand to let her go) and then I finally put her down in her crib.  Her little glow worm plays music and her turtle lights up the room with stars, but her favorite part is listening to me read "Llama Llama Red Pajama".  As soon as she hears me reading she laughs and hugs her little toy. My favorite part is "Little Llama, don't you know...Mama Llama Loves you so!  Llama Mama's Always Near.  Even when she's not right here".    When I'm done I kiss her on her forehead and I walk away.  Five minutes later I'll tip toe back in to watch her sleep.  There is nothing more precious too watch your baby sleep. 

People always say "just wait until your second, you won't have time for all of that".  And I wonder if that's true?  I can't help but feel like no matter what my kids come first and making each moment count.  I'd like to think that if I had four kiddos to put to bed, I'd somehow make a night time routine work for us.  TV shows, Facebook...none of that is important when it comes to spending time with my baby llama. 

Wednesday Weigh In

It's only been 3 days since the start of our competition and I'm going to admit that it is VERY challenging!  My goal is to count all my calories this week and I've found myself struggling to plug in those high calorie foods because I hate to see what it looks like on paper.  It's funny how easy it is to stuff our face with something and not pay attention to the nutritional value of it.  For example, the past two hours I've had a mental struggle to NOT eat a bowl of Lucky Charms.  One cup is 150 calories, which let's face it, there is a 2 cup minimum when eating cereal. 

I have managed to work out three times this week and I have my gym bag packed for tomorrow morning too.  Thanks to my $40 jogging stroller I bought on craigslist, I'm able to take Vivien on my runs jogs.  She seems to enjoy the outdoors.  It was a bit windy on our latest run but she didn't seem to mind her bubble.

She was just as exhausted as I was after our jog.



I realized I didn't put my weight in last week's pre-compeition photos, but it was 153.  I'm going to wait until next week to post my measurements because I doubt it's really changed with only three workouts (unless your trainers are Bob & Jillian).  But without further adieu....

WEEK 1 WEIGH IN:  152.2 LBS

Here's an Update on my competition:

Jessica Weighing in @ 158.2 lbs

Nelly weighing in at 178.0 lbs

"Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going." -Jim Ryan

1-1-11

Just last week we were discussing a film made in 1990 and I realized how long ago that was!!  The term the "90's" sounds like ages ago! It's amazing how quickly days turn into months and months turn into years.  I look forward to this new year (and my new addition).  I'm extremely blessed to be healthy, surrounded by an amazing family, have a stable job and a beautiful home. 


This year my efforts to be a better person consist of:

1. Spending more time at church.
2. Capturing more family moments on video.
3. Using exact change.
4. Not looking at my phone when I am rocking Vivien to sleep.
5. Cooking more meals at home.
6. Strengthening  relationships with my closest friends. (Starting tonight with dinner and drinks)



Happy New Year!