Great School & A Change Is A Comin'

The other day I talked about my kiddies 1st day of school pictures. CLICK HERE TO SEE ALL THOSE PICTURES. This week has been a busy one, I now have a 2nd grade daughter and 3rd grade son. Look how much they've grown! How does that happen? 

(yes, I am aware that I need to sweep my dusty porch!!)

I may have said this before but I'll say it again, I love the kids school! They get 2 days of P.E. each week, prayer before lunch over the loud speaker (yes this is a public school!), and the best teachers a mama could ask for. Both kids have been blessed with great teachers and a good group of kids in their classes. The biggest advantage to living in a small town is that I am close personal friends with much of the teaching staff, so I always know what's going on regarding my kids education. 

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Health update: My hubby has been doing pretty good with his health. His heart is strong and his little health scare has created great changes in our home. We are still eating very healthy, my husband has dropped 40 pounds! (way to go sweetie!) I have dropped 15, sure not as impressive but I am working hard on it (most of the time). 

(no that is not us, but I thought if it was a real picture of us running it might scare you! AHHHH! Image me 50 pounds heavier and my hubby would NEVER wear spandex pants!!) 

In the next chapter of our healthy lifestyle/weight loss journey we will be doing a full body detox. I am scared out of my mind! We have never done this, I have no idea what to expect. So in preparation of this body cleansing I ate some cheesecake... What? I figured if we're going to detox might as well say good bye to an old friend, ha ha.

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I hope you have had a great week. I hope to fall into my back to school rhythm very soon where I can juggle all these house hold chores and get back on track with my playstation Zumba (oh yeah, I do that. LOVE IT!) Well, I must be off. My Friday night glass of red wine is calling my name. 

au revoir, adieu, ciao, till next time... 

To The Pool And Beyond With MS

I have to send a huge message out to my Grandma Arlene... YOU GO GIRL! I am so proud of her. She just recently started a swimming class to help with her immobility caused from Multiple Sclerosis. Does this not look like the face of a happy lady?



My mom and dad flew out to California a few weeks ago and got her all signed up and ready to go. My grandmother was a bit nervous since it has been over 10 years since she has been able to get into a swimming pool. But she is also an adventurous type and couldn't wait.

Here's a little definition of MS "Multiple Sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune response attacks a person's central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), leading to impairment in sensation, movement, cognition, or other functions depending on which nerves are involved." -courtesy of wikipedia

Grandma Arlene was diagnosed with MS in the late 80's, luckily she was older so it had been a very slow progression. Her main area affected has been her legs. This was a camping, hiking, motorcycle mama we're talking about here so once the MS took away her ability to walk it took away a huge chunk of who she was.



She lives in a little town in the mountains and when word got out that there was a handicap excess-able pool we all jumped at the chance to get her in there! I mean where is the one place you can feel normal and healthy even if your legs don't work anymore? The pool!! Her smile is the most beautiful I have ever seen and I loved getting these pictures in my e-mail inbox today.



Way to go mom for giving this amazing gift to grandma, and way to go grandma for getting right in the water, and always inspiring me to jump over any hurdles that get in my way. I love you.


*added later by my mother: "How blessed I am to be the daughter of this "swimming Grandma". Her example of how to live life hand in hand with her Heavenly Father & happy for each and every day is truly a feat we all can learn from. Her legs may not work, but her heart & love for her family makes up for any "disability" people may see on the outside. I LOVE you Liz for sharing this beautiful story with your friends."
Thanks mom :)

au revoir, adieu, ciao, till next time...

It's About Time!

I have been sitting pretty at 182 pounds for over a month now. Sure everyone hits weight loss plateaus, but come on! I'm at the gym at least 4 times a week, and eating well. I have kept a positive attitude on the outside. On the inside I have been screaming with frustration!

So this morning I step on the scale for my weekly weigh in...

178.4

YEAH, the last time I was in the 170's was before I had children. Yippy skippy! OK, I know some of you are thinking that is still a big number but for me it is a major milestone to get to pre-baby weight. I am thrilled. Bringing my grand total of pounds lost to 32 pounds. Which means I have officially past the half way mark to my ultimate goal.

Don't worry, I didn't celebrate by eating donuts. I decided to stay home, get on the treadmill while watching Rogers and Hammerstein's "South Pacific." Love that movie :)

What did I do different this week? The only thing I can think of is I drank a TON of coffee to keep up with my son's football schedule, ha ha.

Before (March 2009)

After... So Far (August 2009)

How did you do this week?

(also, want to appologize for not visiting your blogs as much this week, football, gym, dirty house... you get the picture!)

au revoir, adieu, ciao, till next time...

Wordless Wednesday, The Season Begins

Yup, it's that time of year again. We'll rush home do homework at the speed of light, gobble down dinner insanely early, load up the truck and head to the field. We'll get home late, tired and dirty, clean up and hit the hay. Then we'll wake up and do it all over again. Football has begun!

au revoir, adieu, ciao, till next time...

Ouch, Everything Hurts!!

*first of all, i LOVE this picture of Marily Monroe working out!*

If you follow me on Twitter, you will know that I have not been keeping up with my exercise routine over the summer as well as I should have. No... I won't give you excuses (although I have some real good ones!) because I was just being lazy. As a result to my fat butted laziness I have put on 4 pounds. YIKES, not good for a girl who was on a losing streak for months.

Well, gaining scared me, I have worked SO HARD to get to where I am. I still have about 30 pounds to go, and it was time once again to kick booty at the gym. Here's how my week went down:

Monday: Running/Walking 3 miles on treadmill
Tuesday: Running 2 miles on treadmill, Stregth Training
Wednesday: Running/Walking 2 miles on treadmill, Yoga
Thursday: Kickboxing class, Walking 2 Miles, Zumba class
Friday: Running/Walking 3 miles on treadmill

How do I feel? Every part of my body is in pain! My new kickboxing class sure put a hurtin' on me. This weeks worth of workouts wasn't too bad. I am out of shape though. I am amazed at how fast my body lost all muscle endurance, very scary. It shows me that in order to lose weight and keep it off I am going to have to work out forever!

Well there is my update. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

au revoir, adieu, ciao, till next time...

Giant Whale Coming Through

Must. breathe. treadmill. kicking. my. booty.
I. need. water.
My. legs. are. falling. off. my. body!
Why. is. my. butt. so. big?
I. swear. i. will. eat. better.
This. is. just. ridiculous.
Where's. the. damn. weight. loss. fairy?


My hubby and I watched "The Biggest Loser" premiere last night, nothing like good old fat guilt to get you motivated! So here I am exhausted, hot, sweaty, and STARVING!

I have a ton of things coming up in 2009 that require weight loss:

*High School Reunion (aaahhhhhhhhhhhh)
*Home Building (I want to have a pretty house with a pretty body)
*Trips to visit family now that we're closer (They all remember me smaller then I am now...)

But, the main reason for all this crazy workout stuff is

I am SICK and TIRED of being a giant whale!!!

I know I sound like every other female after new years "My resolution for the new year is to lose weight and get in shape" blah blah blah... 2 months later we're all back on the couch eating ice cream.

I have to get it right this time. I am heavier then I have ever been, even when i was pregnant with both my kids. No reason for this fat except me. I am just not as active as I once was and it has caught up with me.

OK, thanks for helping me cool-down from the treadmill of death. Off I go to fold laundry (how many calories do I burn for that?)

Ta Ta for now

You're Gonna Miss this...Moment, NOT!

OK, can I change this up a bit? Since the impending move is less then a month away now, I have a million things I am going to miss (my friends, my house, my kids friends, the woods that surround our home, the pool, my sense of security...) Today I am going to tell you about a moment I am NOT going to miss. I am NOT going to miss this:

Once I reach that imaginary, always longing for, distant weight I want to be, I will be so excited to GET OFF THE TREADMILL! Yes, I know if I ever get to that magic number I will have to maintain to stay there, but I won't have to hang out with this machine everyday. And that is the moment I will NOT miss.

Today not missing is so much easier to deal with, I hope you understand. :) Have a great weekend everyone!

This "You're Gonna Miss This...Moment" inspired and linked back to
Pam @ You're Gonna Miss This . Remember to cherish every
moment God has given us.

Ta Ta for now