We ♥ healthy! - Week 4

Gosh, has it already been 4 weeks. I should be wearing a size 2 and skinny jeans by now....ahhh, right, this is the real world, no such luck.

Honestly, I almost forgot about posting about our healthy week. That just might clue you in on how my week went. Not much exercise in this week. I did work on my arms several times, and that exercise also included holding a couple of big, baby boys. That is an exercise that I don't mind in the least. Holding sweet babies as they curl up into little balls. Praise to their mommas...they get a workout all day everyday. (just for the record, I did do some actual real arm exercises too!)

Eating wasn't too bad. Although, with this weekend being what it is....I could blow it all in one night.

Anyway, I'd love to hear how you did. Did you get your exercise in? Water?

Remember...together we are going to ♥LOVE♥ getting healthy!

Carving Pumpkins!

Last night, we had a great time carving our pumpkins. Max would NOT stick his hand in the pumpkin...he used his spoon to get all the goop out...

and as you can see, one seed on the spoon per scoopful took a long while.

Maggie on the other hand, dug right in...she loved getting all the goop!

Yuck!

Good job, buddy!

Happy Halloween!

Lot's of parties!

So we go from Traci's pity party to a fun-filled Pumpkin Patch Party! Lot's of P's...but more importantly, lot's of parties!

Every year our church has a Pumpkin Patch Party. It is a fabulous, non-scary Halloween party for the kiddies. We have a cake walk (don't you all just love the cake walk...I do!), fishing in the pretend pond for prizes, cookie decorating, a photo frame craft, and a regular craft. We also do a ring toss (can you get the glow stick ring over the stem a pumpkin? It's not easy!), guess how many candy corn are in the jar, and we always lots of yummy snacks to snack on.

It's always a super fun time and the kids leave with a little less energy they came with....until they open the huge bags of candy that we send home with them. But heck, by then....they are at home with their moms and dads....climbing the walls...not our problem. (hehe!)

Anyway, this year's party was last Saturday and the kids dressed up as a cowboy and a cowgirl...and at the last minute, I decided to jump in too!

We had a fabulous time and then spend the rest of the evening at home with some friends. Thanks for coming over to hang out with us Bressner's. It was a fun night.

Pity Party!

Over the last few weeks, I've been having this private, poor-me, pity party for myself. I've been down in the dumps about my MS. I've been feeling just fine, so it's not because I'm feeling poorly. I'm just so sick and tired of being a pin cushion very single day. I have bruises everywhere and some of my injections hurt for the entire week, and then all of a sudden, I'm back at the same spot all over again. Honestly, it sucks!

Then when I start feeling this way, I feel even worse, because there are so many other people out there dealing with a heck of a lot more stuff than I am. I try to remember that I don't have it that bad. I always try to think of my cousin's little guy, Chandler, he is diabetic and gives himself numerous injections per day and he's only eight! Yes, 8 years old and so brave! He's such an inspiration.

Yesterday morning as I was watching the Today show, this little segment came on.

This is just another flashing-neon-sign from God in my opinion. Our health, including mental health, can be profoundly changed just based on our attitude. I'm going to get out of this funk and be happy about the challenges God has given me. As a friend on Facebook wrote today, "

God gave you your life because he knows that you are the only one strong enough to handle it.

Amen to that!

We ♥ healthy! - Week 3

Well...how'd you do? Was this week any better?

Mine wasn't the best....but I have to say it wasn't the worst either.

I've been sticking to my "no soda" rule very well....none yet! Now it isn't easy, the other night we had pizza and I totally wanted to drink a little Sprite...but I didn't....it's a start.

I've been drinking a lot more water. Also good!

Exercise has it's challenges...I did go for a nice walk last Saturday (Thanks to Elizabeth for letting my kids come over and play for a while) and again on Monday while Max was at school. I guess the challenge right now is the gym. I love going to the Body Step classes on Mondays and Wednesdays, but I don't really like taking Max with me right now with all the sickness going around. I know I send him to school, but I also know that at school, if the teachers think a child shouldn't be there...they'll send the kid home....they don't really do that at the gym. So I don't know, maybe it's another excuse.

I did however, rake and mow the lawn the other day. I definitely count that as exercise. My arms and back were killing me by that night and my one hand still hurts. So, I guess I'll take what I can get right now. Andy did bring home a Wii Fit from China...so maybe I can work that into my routine. Do any of you know a good game/video for the Wii Fit? I would love any suggestions!

Eating wasn't too too bad either. I've got my breakfast/lunch/during the day menu down pat. Pretty light...and lots of water. Then I feel I can have a few more calories in the evenings. Pretty good on the "mommy drinks" this week too. Only had 1 margarita on Tuesday night while the kids and I where over at a friend's house for taco Tuesday. (Thanks again Jenny, we had a great time!)

So all in all....not too bad. I really have to pump up the exercise. I made a chart for me to keep track of what I eat and the exercise I do each day. I thought it might help to stay focused....but I don't know. Any tips you have that might help me and others would be appreciated too!

So, do tell...I want to know how your week was....together we are going to ♥LOVE♥ getting healthy!

He's Home

The kids are showing off their new pajamas!

And then showing us their karate moves! They both were so excited to see their daddy. More pictures to come! (I guess I should have gotten a picture with him....I always think of it after the fact!)

Lots of count-downs this week!

Only 3 more days till Andy gets home. We are so excited to have Daddy back home with us. His Thursday is going to be about 36 hours long, yikes! (just thinking of that flight makes me cringe!) I'm sure he'll be tired and maybe a little cranky on Friday, but we don't care. We'll take him any way we can.

I have a new respect for people who do this parenting gig all on their own. I especially think of a friend who's husband is serving our country in Afghanistan. She does this all the time. She is my hero. I also think of all the single parents out there and how hard it must be for them to juggle all the duties of parenthood, but they do it, every single day. Bless you!

I am reminded again how important a positive attitude is. It really does make a difference. (The sunshine sure helps too!)

I feel so blessed to have my husband coming home to us in just a few short days! We can't wait to see you!

Only 66 days...

till Christmas!

Have you started your shopping yet?

I have already purchased several items. I like to get a jump start. I bet you can't believe that :)

I've ordered several things from Etsy? ♥Love Etsy♥

Anyway...I'd love to know how you do your shopping. Do you wait till it gets a lot closer? Wait till your Christmas savings check comes? Or are you a last minute shopper like my hubby? I'm dying to know if you've gotten a super great deal on something totally awesome too! Do share!

We ♥ healthy! - Week 2

Okay...not such a good week.

I'm not trying to make excuses, it's just that this week is the farthest thing from normal for me. On top of my favorite monthly visitor arriving (I know..sorry, too much information!) and doing this parenting gig on my own, my one and only goal this week was to survive.

Eating hasn't been the best. I do pretty well during the day. But we have been either doing a quick dinner because we have to be somewhere or eating out because it keeps us busy.

Exercise hasn't been any better. I did go to the gym on Monday for the Body-Step class, but haven't done anything since. The weather has been too cruddy to go for a walk and I've been trying to rest while both kids are at school. (I know...more excuses!)

On a positive note, I still haven't had any soda (although, I must admit that I did open the fridge and grab one out....but I put it back, knowing that it wouldn't taste as good as I was thinking it would!)

And drinking more water has become easier thanks to the tips that Jodi R posted. I've been keeping my water bottle filled and left out on the counter (even though I hate leaving things out on the counter) I have found that I do drink a lot more when it's at room temperature.

My other goal, that I don't think I listed the first time, was not to eat *anything* after 8:00 p.m. They say you shouldn't eat at least 2-3 hours before you go to bed. I have been doing this for a while now....but every once in a while, Andy and I will make a bag of popcorn after the kiddos are in bed, and I thought this week I would be horrible at this goal. I thought I would eat because I was feeling lonely. But I've done much better than I thought I would. Nothing at all after 8:00.

So all in all, it hasn't been a horrible week. My plan is to really get to the gym next week and get that exercise in...what about you? How did your week go?

Remember, we are doing this together....Together we are going to ♥LOVE♥ getting healthy!

We Miss you!

I opened the book again....

I've had some issues arise over the past several months. Issues concerning my kids, my parenting style, and just me in general. Nothing major, nothing life threatening, just a few bumps in the road. We all have them, right?! This journey wouldn't be any fun if it was smooth sailing all the time!

But there is one thing I can count on. One thing that gets me out of that pot-hole in the road and back on a some-what smooth surface. Yep, you guessed it...God!

Now....please don't stop reading because you think I'm gonna start preachin'... honestly, I wouldn't even know where to begin. I have a long road ahead of me in my faith journey...and I'm talkin l-o-n-g folks. So please, continue reading, I promise it won't be too bad.

Now, I know I've told you all about this book before (if you still need to get one....click here!) I seriously look at this book daily. It has the stuff we all deal with on a daily basis in it...for example, Priorities, Patience, Guidance, & Friendship, just to name a few. Oh, and I also bought this one a few weeks ago. It's just as awesome as the other one!

But today, I opened up to this one:

Attitude

Be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind (having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude). Ephesians 4:23

Your attitude can substantially affect your happiness level. It's true. When your mind is assaulted every day by "stinkin' thinkin'" - and things like, "I'm not good enough," "I'm not loved," "I'll never reach my dreams" - it's pretty tough to be happy. On the other hand, when you think about good things - God things - your happiness level will soar. Try it! "God loves me" "God is always by my side, watching out for me," "God has made me a winner." What a difference it will make.

An attitude is simply a response to what you see - keep your mind turned in to the good.

I like that last part!

How true! My entire day is better, when I can look around and be thankful for what I have and what I am able to do. I feel blessed that I have healthy, happy kids and a loving husband. Even just looking around at this beautiful world that God created for us (even on the not-so-sunny days!) Everything in my life is better when I have the right attitude. All that silly small stuff that I think is BIG at the time, disappears when I have the right attitude. Now, I'm not saying this is easy...in fact it's kinda hard, but I'm trying. He has given me so much, the least I can do is to show my appreciation!

Away!

Andy left on a business trip yesterday morning. A trip to China. It's a great experience for him and I'm happy that he is employed with a good job that he needs him in this important role right now. But, China is really far away. Like on-the-other-side-of-the-world far!

So the kids and I have to stay busy. Which also means that we need to stay healthy. I would appreciate any prayers for the latter. We created a paper chain to help us count down the days till he comes home. And of course, I'll be writing the countdown each day on my prissy plate (which I LOVE by the way!)

Yesterday at church, during my adult Sunday School class, we redid the Love Languages worksheet. Have you done this yet? Do you know your love language? Check it out.....you can do that here!

Anyway, I'm "Words of Affirmation", verbal appreciation goes a long way with me. I need reassurance. The point I'm getting to is this. My hubby knows this about me and whether or not he was doing it because he knew of my love language doesn't matter. He did it.

He wrote all of us our own little notes and left them in our family mailboxes. The kids and I were cleaning in the craft/computer room yesterday and found the notes. It was perfect timing. Maggie has read her note over and over and even put it under her pillow last night when she went to bed.

I'll be hanging on to my little note as well over the next 2 weeks. I'm sure I'll take it out often and reread it, just like Maggie. It's these small little things that make me love that awesome guy of mine more and more.

We ♥ healthy! - Week 1

Okay...it's Friday! It's our first week of checkin in with each other to see how we did with getting healthy.

It was a pretty good week here.

No soda at all for me! But here are a few tips for those of you trying not to drink soda as well. We keep our soda in a small refrigerator downstairs. It's not in the main fridge...(that's tip 1). I put this label on the fridge downstairs too....just as a reminder. (tip 2) And tell your kids that you are trying not to drink soda....they will be for sure to remind you! (tip 3)

The exercise has gone pretty well too.

♥ I took Charlie for an hour walk on Monday while both kids were in school. It was a beautiful day and it was nice to get out in the fresh air. My poor puppy was ready to be done. Oh, and my legs...boy where they burning the next day.

♥Tuesday, I walked for an hour at the gym...not as fun as the walk on Monday...but was glad I did it.

♥Wednesday, I did an hour Body Step class. Love the class, Love my instructor and Love how I feel when the class is over!

Feelin' it all in my legs yesterday.....but heading back to the gym today to do the treadmill. I'm gonna need to find some more tunes too!

Eating has gone pretty well too. I have to say that dinner is my big meal. I like to eat with my family. So I have been eating light throughout the day and then I feel like I'm able to eat at dinner time.

So for breakfast I have been eating a hard-boiled egg with half of a mini bagel. Then I usually eat some yogurt about 10:00ish. For lunch I've been doing a wheat wrap with a little chicken. I usually have an honey crisp apple (they are the best apples in the world, by the way!) And then I eat dinner. Trying to have only 1 portion.

The hardest part of the day for me is between 3-5 pm. I don't know why. And the peanut m&m's sitting right there on the counter, looking so festive in their cute Halloween colors, they just scream my name. So no more m&m's.....nope, once these are gone...I'm not buying anymore. (oh, and here's the funny thing....regular m&m's could sit there for weeks and I wouldn't touch them...it's just the peanut ones that I can't resist!)

Oh, yeah...I almost forgot. The water! Not so good. Any tips on this? Do you just fill a jug and set it out till you drink it all? Do you put flavor in yours? I honestly don't drink too much during the day. I usually have a cup of coffee in the morning....and at lunch I have a tall glass of skim milk...but other than that....I'm a bad drinker I guess!

Okay, enough about me. How did you do? Leave some comments and let me know!

Remember, we are in this together! Together we are going to ♥LOVE♥ getting healthy!

Celebrating Max!

I admit it, I'm kind of a strict mom. My mom was too and I guess I get that from her. All in all, it's not a bad thing, although I'm sure my kids wouldn't agree with me.

Being that strict mom, I have this rule that the kids won't have "friend" birthday parties till they are in kindergarten. Our family is big enough, and the goods the kids get from family is enough to make a LOT of kids happy.

So as the time was fast approaching for Max's birthday, he was very excited for his "family only" party. However, I think he thought everyone was in his family. He would come home from school and ask, "Mom, is Maddy in my family, I want her to come to my party?!" He asked this several times about different non-family members, and even a few real family members.

So this past Sunday we celebrated his birthday with the family. It was a nice afternoon and the weather cooperated too. We just had cake and ice cream, oh and some brownies too. My family sure likes their treats!

Max is really into Lego right now......can you tell?


He also got a super cool red Chevy SSR that his Grandpa Dave had picked out a while back. That gift has even more meaning to us now that Grandpa Dave is no longer with us. Pretty lucky guy, that Max, now he has a cool car just like Grandpa Dave had.


He also got a really cool remote control helicopter that I think Andy has played with more than Max.


All in all, I think he had a great "family" birthday party! I better start planning his "friend" party soon. This guy has big ideas....

Oh, and Santa....no need to stop here this year, we have enough to last for a long, long time.

It's that time again....

time to get my rear in gear and try to get a head start on getting this weight off for good.

Last year, Missy did a fun little bloggy thing called "Hot for the Holidays!" It really worked for me. I set some attainable goals, I got some encouragement from other friends also attempting to get Hot for the Holiday, and the most important thing for me, was that it held me accountable for my actions.

Anyone else out there wanna give it another go around? We could start *NOW* and then all you have to do is leave a comment on Fridays on how you did. You don't need to have a blog...just leave a comment and let me know how you are doing.

So I'm starting again right *NOW*

Here are my goals:

• No soda

• Drink lots of water

• Exercise at least 4 times a week for 1 hour: that could include walking on the treadmill at the gym, taking a walk outside, or a class at the gym

• Watching portion control

So those are my goals, I may add to them later, but a girls gotta start somewhere.

I'd love for you to join me....leave me a comment and let me know your with me! We can do it....we'll do it together!

Five years ago today....

this very sweet boy came into our lives!

Maxwell Andrew weighed in at 8 pounds, 8 ounces and 19 1/2 inches long. And was just perfect!

A healthy baby is a true blessing from God and Max made our family complete.

This was Maggie holding her little brother for the very first time. Oh, the fun they have had over the last five years.

God also blessed us with a very special Nana, one who we didn't have long enough, but are so thankful for the time she was able to share with Max.

Max was also able to meet his Great-Grandpa!

Max is a very observant little guy!

Always happy and sweet!

Full of life and full of energy!

Absolutely adorable...

And such a lover!

Our world would not be the same without you Max! We love you very much! Have a very happy 5th Birthday!