I Know... I'm a Dork!

Ever heard of e-mealz?  We signed up for it!  I am SO excited.  We went grocery shopping and saved a TON of $$$ too!  The fact that my meals are planned out for me and they are simple (and cost effective!) is so exciting!  It is official... I know... I am a dork.  Hopefully this will help us in many ways.  Eating at home not only saves $$$, but also saves CALORIES!  Hooray for e-mealz!

My school schedule is changing in the spring.  Hopefully this will give me more time to take care of myself and my family!  One more final exam and then I can relax.  I can already breathe a little easier.  Ahhh...

This morning, as I was driving across the lake from taking C to school I thought about how beautiful it was. 

 I did NOTHING to deserve this beautiful view.  God is such an amazing artist!

Seeing this sunrise motivated me.  It made me want to RUN. 

As soon as I got home, I changed clothes, grabbed the leash, and headed out with Darcy, my eleven month old miniature dachshund.  That little dog made it 2.3 miles!  She's tougher than I thought.  Of course, it was NOT all running.  We did walk some too.  She's now passed out on the couch.  I guess I wore her out!

Here is another picture I took of the sky when Darcy and I were out.  Sorry about the shabby photography.  The pictures were taken with my phone.

What a great start to a great week!  

Thank you, GOD, for the beautiful sunrise!

TIPS!

Recently I have had a few friends ask for some information by email or Facebook.  I decided to copy/paste it to my blog for future reference.  Hope it's helpful!  

I really am not crazy about expensive fad diets. From what I've observed, they typically are WAY over priced and they do not last. Who can really live their entire life drinking shakes or taking supplements. That's just not how God created us to live. It's not natural!

Okay, you may already know most of these, but here are a few things that work for me:

1)PRAY.
Don't rely solely on yourself, others, or self-help books. All these can be VERY helpful, but I think you know WHO we should ultimately depend on!

2)ACCOUNTABILITY.
Find a few friends that you feel you can completely trust and share EVERYTHING (I would be happy to be one of those!). True accountability is really difficult at first, but you will find that it will ultimately make things so much better for you. Share your struggles, temptations, likes, dislikes, weight (this is the toughest!), exercise, EVERYTHING. I promise it WILL make a difference! I have a close friend who shares the same struggles I do and in the past, we have texted each other our weight weekly. I'm at 177 (was down to 159, then back up to 186), and HAVE to get back on track before I am right back where I started. I have even gone so far as texting her everything I ate as I ate it. Whatever it takes, right?!

3)MEASURE YOUR FOOD.
This is easy, but also easy to forget to do! Get some measuring cups/spoons that are simple and easy to use. I have a set that actually look like spoons. I LOVE them! They are 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8 cups. Get whatever works for you though. I like the spoon shape of mine b/c I can easily serve my food with them.
It helps to SEE how much food you are putting on your plate. Don't starve yourself. Look at the serving size, and get that amount. If when you finish, you still feel hungy, go back and MEASURE your second helping.
Once I got used to doing this, I actually started measuring out 1/2 of the serving size of the one thing on my plate that was the most unhealthy (I usually did what had the most carbs). That way when I got seconds, it was only one complete serving and I wasn't going overboard on it!
Another easy measuring tool is to imagine a divided styrofoam plate. The biggest section should be your green veggie, the two smallest your meat and carb. You can do that when you don't have a way of measuring.

4)MEASURE YOURSELF.
Get a friend to measure an area of your body that you struggle with. You can look up measuring charts online if you want to measure what is recommended by the experts. Sometimes you may not shrink in weight, but you are losing inches (especially if you're working out). I would honestly rather lose inches than pounds!
Cut a ribbon or string the length of your beginning measurements and each time you measure (I like to do once monthly), cut a new one. It's kind of fun to see if/how it changes!

5)REMEMBER THAT YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL!!!
No matter what we look like, we are beautiful! I tell my precious nine year old daughter all the time that "God doesn't make ugly people." to remind her that we are all "precious in His sight". Find a few inspiring scriptures and memorize them as a reminder of this!!!

6) Always use a smaller plate and smaller utensils. 
We tend to want to fill our plate with food and you can fill a small plate and it actually ends up being enough food. Plus if you want to go back for seconds, it's not quite as bad as if you had a normal dinner plate.  Don't forget to measure those second helpings!

7) Read some inspiring books. Here are a few of my favorites.
-First Place For Health
-Made to Crave (I also have this audiobook in my car.)
-The Weigh Down Diet (I don't totally agree with everything this author says, but the book is full of helpful tips.)
-Thin Within

You can probably find some of these in your local or church library.
 
8) Find some graphs or charts where you can see your loss (pounds or inches). 
It motivates you to keep trying and not give up. I found one that was a line graph and it was cool to see the line going down as I was losing. It did it in very small increments so it went down every time I would lose .5 of a pound.
 
9) I did Weight Watchers, so I try to remember what my zero points foods are and eat them as often as possible. If you aren't familiar with this I would be happy to share. There are lots of websites that you can use to find this stuff out too.


http://www.laaloosh.com/ 
This site has lots of resources, charts, and information that is great!

http://www.dwlz.com/
This has mostly WW info, but has restaurant info too. 

10)TAKE YOUR TIME!!!  

This didn't happen overnight. It's not going to come off overnight... and that is OKAY! Don't listen to advertisements and others who say "lose 50 pounds by..." some crazy, unrealistic date. If you lose slowly, you're teaching your body to keep it off. I did gain weight after losing, but it wasn't all of it and I refused to let myself get frustrated. I know that I can just do what I know I need to do and get it off again. This is a lifelong struggle for me and I know it is probably something I will always deal with. I just have to be sure to be aware of that. It's okay. I'm not sad about it. I will just take my time and make changes to stay on the right path. Slow loss over a long period of time is better than crash dieting and being on a never-ending weight loss roller coaster. 

You're doing great, don't give up!!!

Do you know of any other helpful tips or resources?  Please share if you do!

When? What?

I think I have come up with my target weight for my BIG goal.  It is BIG... like REALLY BIG.  Actually, I will be REALLY small by the time this is all over with!  I KNOW I can with HIS help, and I AM EXCITED!!!
Before I share my target weight, I would like to get all my specifics nailed down.  I need a date.  Deciding WHEN I want to reach my target weight will determine LOTS of issues.  This includes the method I choose to use to accomplish this goal.
I have mentioned before that I am NOT a fan of crazy fad diets.  This is something I still feel strongly about.  I need to make a total lifestyle change.  This is the most realistic option for me.  I need to do something that I can stick with after I reach my target weight.  I do not just want to lose, I want to MAINTAIN.
When thinking about my method, I have to think about foods that I tend to go overboard with... foods that tend to make me want to just jump totally off the wagon.   What are they?

• Chocolate
• Fast Food
• Candy
• Bacon
• Cookie Dough
• French Fries
• Bread With Butter and Garlic
• Popcorn With LOTS of Butter
• Chips

Hmm...  I see a pattern here.  My list contains mostly carbohydrates and sugar.  What does this say about ME?  What can I do about this?  More importantly, what can I do about this that will keep me from totally eliminating these things from my diet? 
I know I have to slow down and eat more healthy foods.  Maybe I should try fasting a few of these things for a while.  In the book Made to Crave, the author talks about fasting.  Is this something I should try?  WHAT food or foods should I abstain from?  Have YOU ever fasted?  How wonderful would it be to learn to turn to God each time a craving hit?  Is that not the whole purpose in all this?  Do I not need to learn to turn to God in my time of weakness? 

I Don't Think, I KNOW I Can!

Some days I feel like the Little Engine That Could.  "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can..."  Well, no more thinking!  I KNOW I CAN!  I mentioned before that I want to do something big.  I want to do something REALLY big.

I have done some research.  If there is one thing I know, it is that ideal weight charts are silly.  None of them are the same.  Some say I have a medium build.  Some say I have a large build.  Some say I should weigh around 120 pounds.  Some say I should weigh around 140 pounds.  There are experts who say you should go by weight.  There are others who say you should go by BMI.

According to the charts and calculators my BMI is 32.7.  This is considered obese.  Gross. 

Here are the BMI stats:

BMI Categories:

Underweight = <18.5
Normal weight = 18.5–24.9
Overweight = 25–29.9
Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater 

 

Looks like I have a long road ahead of me.  If I were to weigh 150, my BMI would still be 27.4.  This is still considered overweight.  140 pounds is a BMI of 25.6... STILL overweight.

In order to reach the normal weight range, I need to weigh a whopping 136 pounds.  Keep in mind this is at the very TOP of the range.  My BMI would still be 24.9, and would not leave me any room to play.  In order to be right in the middle of the Normal weight range, I need to weigh 119 pounds.  WOW.  That is 60 pounds less than what I weigh right now.  WOW.  There are no words for this! 

What do you think I should shoot for?

SICK of This

Okay, I am typically a pretty upbeat girl.  I feel that negativity gets us nowhere.  Anytime I post a blog, update a status, text, leave a message, etc., I try to keep it as positive as possible.  Why not?  I am not lying or sugar coating.  I simply try to find good in everything, in spite of the bad.  It makes me feel better, and I truly believe it helps those around me.

The following are some pretty negative thoughts I have been having lately.  I know I should not post them, and I know I may regret this later, but I have GOT to get it out.

I am so sick of being the fat girl in a room full of skinnies.  I am tired of being the fat one in all the pictures.  I have actually untagged myself in pictures so that others might not notice how fat I look.  My clothes are tight.  My body is gross.  Even if I were to lose a ton of weight, I still have this post two c-sections grossness!  My skin (which has always been amazing) is beginning to look older.  I can tell I have definitely hit my peak and am slowly going back down the hill.  Not only do I think I LOOK bad, I FEEL bad.  My legs ache, my back and knees hurt.  I know if I were to lose some major poundage, this would most likely change.  But that would mean I would have to put forth some effort.  UGHHH...

Want to know my positive answer to all of this?  I am going to DO something.  I do not know exactly what yet, but I know it HAS to happen.  Surely my creator and AWESOME GOD did not create me to live a life of fatness and unhealthy living. 

I WILL make changes.  BIG changes.  No more five pound goals.  Well... I will make five pound goals, but I will also set a BIG goal that I WILL reach!  I will use the five pound goals along the way.

Here is the part where I need your help.  I need to set good goals for myself.  Not just physical, but mental, and (most importantly) spiritual goals.  Keep in mind that I am a busy mother of two busy children.  We are on the go lots of the time.  I am also a full time student.  I am about 5'2" tall and (as of this morning) I weigh 178 lbs.  I wear a size 14, or XL.  My goals and rewards need to be inexpensive.

I am totally open to tips or suggestions.  I need BIG ideas!  Feel free to post in a comment or email me at healthybeth@gmail.com. 

Tonight or tomorrow I will try to post some of the ideas I have in mind and some that I get from you.  Here goes!

The Doctor's Scale

Well, I did it.  I broke down and bought a set of scales.  Yuck.  I have not owned a decent set of scales in at least two years.  I bought a set a little over a year ago, but they were really cheap and I knew there was NO WAY they were accurate.  Plus they had the little dial on the bottom, so I could conveniently adjust them to meet my standards.  Admit it, you have done the same thing AT LEAST once in your life.


I have been using the board for the Wii Fit to weigh myself.  I really like doing that because it tracks your weight and even graphs your progress (or lack of) to help you stay motivated.  SEEING what happens makes a difference!  My favorite time to check my weight is first thing in the morning, when I wake up.  Am I the only one who tends to be a few pounds lighter in the mornings?

Our household is usually pretty hectic at that time of day. The problem with using only the Wii is that you have to take the time to turn everything on, take out whatever game Mike or the kids last played and put in the Wii Fit Plus disk, get out the board, blah, blah, blah...  Surely you get the picture.  I basically use all that as an excuse to not weigh myself.  So, I decided it was time to give in and buy a set of scales.

 Really?  "The Doctor's Scale" is what the box says.  I am not even sure I want a "Doctor's Scale".  They always lie and tell me I am like 4 pounds heavier (more like 20) than I know I actually am.  Another thing I find funny is that the name of it is Healthometer.  HEALTHOMETER?!  Could they just be honest and call it a YOU COULD STAND TO LOSE A FEWOMETER?

Notice that the scales are still in the box.  I bought them a few days ago and just cannot bring myself to open them up.  Ugh... DREAD.  I have to admit that I have NOT done too hot the past few weeks.  Life is cRaZy bUsY and I have used this as an excuse to live a very unhealthy life.

Here are a few more pics of my new Healthometer.  I opened it!  

Is it not just lovely?

I love how it says 135.2 in the display, and below that says "up to 350 lbs.".

SEE... "The Doctor's Scale"!

The back of the box.

Are they not just beautiful?

Healthometer

 

 

 

 I figured if I was going to go to the trouble of opening it up and getting the battery all situated I should just go ahead and get it over with.  

Just to be certain I get an accurate reading, I carry my new purchase into my kitchen where I know the floor is nice and level.  Sitting the scales on the floor, I step on.  GUESS WHAT???

WOO HOO!!!!!

Keep in mind this was done at like 6pm.  I cannot WAIT to see what my new friend says to me in the morning!  Talk about some motivation!  I expected MUCH more.  Like maybe 185???

The only thing I can think of that I have done differently is that I have been eating really good breakfasts.  This has kept me from eating as much during the day.  I have also been drinking LOTS of coffee.  This has been instead of snacking.  I have not done this intentionally, it has just worked out because of the fact that my family has been so busy lately. 

I am a happy girl!  One thing I know, is that I have NOT been doing this on my own.  My AWESOME GOD has gotten me through the past few weeks of craziness.  I am amazed at how calm I have been with all the chaos going on around me.  I will have to say that God IS good ALL the time.

Needing More Water!

I thought I would share a pic of my favorite coffee mug with you.  Bet you cannot guess where I bought it???  Two years ago (about the time I hit the 40 lbs. milestone) I went to Boston, NYC, Hartford, and then all the way back down to Arkansas.  Be sure to watch the clip all the way to the end.  Ahh... memories!

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=9398292

My breakfast today is black coffee (ZERO pts!) from my favorite mug and oatmeal with strawberries (4 pts).  I am full!  One thing I am trying to do is to add a FRESH fruit or veggie to every meal.  It is definitely helping stay fuller longer. 

I weighed this morning and was not real pleased with what I saw...

175.5

That means I am UP half a pound.

I know what to do, now I just need to do it.  One big change I need to make is to drink more water.  I typically go straight from coffee in the mornings to Diet Coke the rest of the day.  If I can make myself drink more water I KNOW it will make a HUGE difference and IT WILL BE WORTH IT! 

When I was at my smallest, I actually hit 159 lbs.  One of the things I did was drink LOTS of water.  Our bodies NEED water!  Do you drink water?  Any tips for trying to get the amount that I need?

New YUMMY Breakfast!

Okay, well it probably is not really anything new.  It is new to me though! 

I could tell I am living a little healthier when I was in Kroger scanning the cream cheese spreads and thought "Hey!  You have strawberries in your cart!  Just get the plain Weight Watchers spread."

Today's breakfast: (5 pts)
1 slice of double fiber bread (The brand I got was 3 pts a slice.  Oops!)
Butter spray
Toast in oven.
After toasted, add 1 serving of Weight Watcher's cream cheese spread (2 pts)
Sliced strawberries on top of that. (ZERO pts)

I will have to say it is SO good!  There was also a time when I would have turned my nose up at this.  Hooray for progress!

Speaking of progress...
I weighed last week on the Wii and I am back down to 175.  I was at 187.  Twelve pounds!  God is good! 

My newest goal (which I set along with a precious friend) is to lose 15 pounds by December 9th.  This is her 50th bday and we are going to accomplish our goal with HIS help!  It can be done!

"The LORD is my portion," says my soul,
"therefore I will hope in him."  -Lamentations 3:24

I would love to hear all about your journey!  Do you have any good breakfast ideas to share?  Have you reached a goal recently?  Have you set any goals lately?  What scripture(s) has the Lord used to help push you through temptation?  

Weight Watchers Week One = Success!!!!!!

Mike and I weighed in tonight.  We were not able to stay for the actual meeting, but we did make a point to go and weigh in.  I was NERVOUS.  Yesterday was my birthday.  I had pizza for dinner and also some cake that my sweet Mom made for me.  

The cake actually was not too bad on the points scale.  It was made especially for me and was Weight Watchers friendly.  I will share the recipe with you in a later post.

I know you are just DYING to find out how we did...

Wait....

Ready for it???

First I will tell you we lost a total of 7 1/2 lbs. combined!

Mike lost 2.5... good job, baby!

I lost 5 POUNDS!

In ONE WEEK!!!!! 

SWEET!  I am thrilled.  I know not to expect it to be this way every week.  It actually does not NEED to be this way every week.  This sure will help keep me motivated though!  I am only 4 pounds away from reaching my 5% goal and I know my 10% will be here before you know it.  I would REALLY like to reach that by the time the holidays get here.  We will see!

It's Official!

Well, it is official.  Mike and I joined Weight Watchers. It will definitely help that my sweet husband is doing this with me. In the past I have tried to do this on my own. That was tough! I would cook healthier foods, but he would not be counting and it just made it easier for me to slack. Thanks for joining me on this new (old) endeavor, Mike! I LOVE YOU!!!!


I am not even going to tell you what my weight was.  YUCK.  Let me just say that going all summer without getting on the scales was NOT a good thing for Beth.  I will tell you that I am allowed to have 29 points a day.  Mike gets 50!  Everyone said there would be a big difference in the amount we each get.  Men always get lots more is what I was told.  Guess they were right!  This should be interesting.

After all that reluctance, I found that the people at the meeting were VERY friendly and helpful.  I look forward to getting to know them a little better!  I do not know why I even hesitated to go.  It was great and will continue to be great.  Especially after I begin to shed the pounds!

I think that once I get used to the new PointsPlus program I will like it.  It is not really that different except for the amount of points you get each week and the points values of foods.  I noticed that lots of the things that they point out as different are things I already knew.  The little start up packet they give new members is very helpful.  I am just happy to have all the new information now so we can get started!

My goal is to very strictly stick to Weight Watchers for a full year. I know it can be done. It will be nice to see what happens! I already have several items in my closet that I have been keeping as "when I lose weight" clothes.  Does every woman do that???  Maybe in the next few weeks I will break them out and show them to you.

Do not be too surprised if I mention Weight Watchers pretty frequently.  I do not intend to turn this into a Weight Watchers blog.  There are PLENTY of those out there.  They are all good and very helpful!  I have a few that I follow and know I will follow a little more closely in the weeks to come.  I will be sure to share any interesting information that I discover.

With my crazy full time wife/mommy/student schedule, I need all the help I can get.  If you know of EASY recipes (preferably ones I can cook in a slow cooker) I would greatly appreciate you sharing them!  PLEASE TRY TO INCLUDE PointsPlus VALUES IF YOU KNOW THEM!  Who knows, if I get enough I may just force myself to become a little more computer savy and create a separate page on my blog for recipes. 
 
 
I LOVE tips! I want to hear about helpful WEBSITES, BLOGS, and most of all EASY RECIPES. Do you have any that work well for you? Please feel free to leave a comment and share with me. 

Considering Weight Watchers... again.

So, I am seriously considering going back to Weight Watchers.  It will not be the first time I have done it.  This works for me!  It is so realistic and teaches healthy habits that my entire family can benefit from.
I first tried Weight Watchers in 2004.  Our first child was two years old.  I lost quite a bit of weight.  Yes, I have been on a roller coaster my entire life.  I will say that I have not ever gotten back up to the point I was when I first joined in 2004.  Even full term pregnant with my second child I did not weigh what I did in 2004.
I have a couple of obstacles that I am needing some help with:

• I have heard that the meetings I used to attend no longer exist.  This is a problem because we live in a small town and there is only one other place to go.  Everyone I have talked to about the place that is still running says negative things about it.  
• I do not have a fancy phone that I can use to keep up with all the points values.  With the new system, I will have my points recalculated and so I will no longer have so many things memorized from the old system.  I still have lots of my old materials, but I really want to JOIN and GO for the accountability.  Everyone that I know that has used the new system is very pleased with it, but they also talk about the convenience of having it on their phone.  It is just not as easy if you have to constantly be looking everything up.

Do you have any suggestions for me?  Do any of my local friends know of a good Weight Watchers or weight loss accountability group?  I actually went to a group in a surrounding town before.  That is the one that no longer exists.  I do not want to drive any further than about ten minutes to get there though.  That would just get to be too much and I have a feeling it would not last long.  I CANNOT GIVE UP!!!!!

Baby Steps

I have decided that it is all about the baby steps.  Little things make a big difference.  This is a phrase that has become very popular in our house over the summer.  I started using it in an attempt to get my kids to help out more with laundry, dishes, etc. 
Walking/running is going well!  It is exciting.  I have yet to weigh myself and REFUSE to do so until my birthday at the end of this month.  Knowing that I have less than a month is really motivating me to do more, MORE, MORE!  I know I have no will power and so I am going to make a conscious effort to make little changes, take baby steps, and do little things.  Eventually they WILL make a BIG DIFFERENCE.
Cool quote I ran across this morning...

 "SHALLOW DESIRES PRODUCE SHALLOW EFFORTS."

I know I have mentioned the book Made To Crave before.  I am beginning the 21 day challenge today and I WILL NOT GIVE UP!!!  This is not a shallow desire!  Anyone feel led to do it with me?  The following is an excerpt from the email I received on DAY 1...

"One day I looked up the definition of the word indulge, which means “unrestrained action.” And 

for me, it was unrestrained eating. You see, eating in its proper context is not the problem. God 

gave us food for nourishment, strength, and even celebration. But when pleasure becomes unrestrained, there’s a problem.

I had to get honest enough to admit it that I relied on food more than I relied on God. I craved food more than I craved God. Chocolate was my comfort and deliverer. Cookies were my reward. Salty chips were my joy. Food was what I turned to in times of stress, sadness, and even in times of happiness.

I knew it was something God was challenging me to surrender to His control. Really surrender. Surrender to the point where I’d make radical changes for the sake of my spiritual health perhaps even more than my physical health.

Part of my surrender was asking myself a different question, a really raw question. May I ask you this same question? Is it possible we love and rely on food more than we love and rely on God?"

WOW.  That last question hit home for me.  Do I give food and my own personal (shallow) desires more attention than I give my own creator?  Unfortunately for me, the answer is a big, fat, ugly YES.  

Here is my verse for the next week:

"Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness 

because we fear God."     -2 Corinthians 7:1

A key word for me in this verse is EVERYTHING.  Everything, as in food, shallow desires, distractions, junk, ANYTHING that is keeping me in this rut of producing shallow efforts.  The second sentence in this is so important.  I DO fear God and because of this, I should be striving to do more for HIM and not feeding (pun intended) my fleshly desires.  

"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is 

not in him."   -John 2:15

Things in the world...  Oh, there are so many things I could say about this!  There are so many things HE says about this!!!  Do you have "things in the world" you struggle with?  Things that may be keeping you from HIM and keep you in the same rut I am in?  It does not have to be food!  We all have different struggles.  We all deal with different "shallow desires".  I WILL make a change.  I WILL do my best to have strong efforts and deep desires!

Hip Hip Hooray!

Every time I say that I think of sweet Mr. Payne.  He was my principal at Sequoyah Elementary School.  He would always pump his fist into the air and say "Hip Hip!" and we would respond with a big "Hooray!"  What a sweet, precious man he was.  :)

The reason I am excited is because yesterday I walked/jogged FOUR miles!!!  Then I got brave and tried on that stinkin' dress.  Guess what?  It fits!  AND it looks better than I remembered it looking in the store.  Hip hip HOORAY!!!

I am so happy about this, but know I still have a LONG way to go.  I will not give up!  Soaring Wings Half Marathon is not even three full months away.  Valley Fest 5K is in less than one month.  I realized yesterday that I am already doing a 5K.  I am not running it all, but I AM doing it.  This is more than I have been able to say before.

I may have mentioned this before, but the best part of running at 5 am (which is getting MUCH easier by the way!) is that I have quiet time when it is still really quiet in my house.  It is WONDERFUL!  Having this time alone with my awesome God is so wonderful.  I love doing this right after running because it helps me keep focus on the fact that I am not in this alone.  I want to be healthy.  I want to be a better person.  I want to do this not for me, but for HIM!!!

I am so technologically challenged, but I am going to attempt to post a video of my new favorite song.  It is so simple, yet so true!  HE deserves everything from me!

Magic Shirt Confession

This is a post that I started last week and forgot to publish...

I definitely have NOT been doing too well in the eating department lately.  You can always tell when I am not making healthy decisions because I do not blog for an extended period of time.  Yep, I just told on myself!
As far as the numbers go, I cannot tell you anything.  I have stuck with my commitment to not weigh myself until my birthday.  This is both good and bad.  I did good at first.  After a week or so I realized I was not going to see that dreaded number for a WHILE.  YIPPEEEE!  What a great reason to eat all the junk I want?!?  Nice.  Well, that did not work out the way I thought it would.  
I realized that I had a problem when I began noticing my clothing fitting differently.  Determined to stay off the scales, I made a mental note to eat healthier.  And that is what I did... I made a mental note.  What is it with me and procrastinating?  Ugh!  Then the dress came in....

Holley and I in Times Square

My sister friend is getting married in September and I have the privilege of standing beside Holley as her matron of honor.  Our dresses were ordered and I was waiting on it to arrive.  When I got the text saying it had arrived I twinged a bit.  What if it does not fit?  I have yet to try that dress on.  It is hanging in my office/closet so I see it often.  I see the dress and think "You need to try that thing on... I'll do it later."  AGAIN with the procrastinating!  I WILL try that dress on THIS WEEK.
I needed a new shirt so I went to TJ Maxx and got the only one that fit my crazy shaped, growing body.  It probably would not have been what I would have chosen, but I needed something in a pinch and I did not want to spend a fortune on a shirt.  Well, I guess the shirt is magic because not one... not two... but THREE people commented on the fact that I look like I am losing weight.  HA!  I fooled them!  It did motivate me though.  This new magic shirt is now my favorite thing in the closet!
While I have not been eating as well, I HAVE still been exercising.  I walked/ran 2.65 miles with two sweet friends just this morning.  Training for Soaring Wings Half Marathon is underway!

I Need Your Opinion

Okay, I am a walker and sometimes runner.  I guess I could say that I'm mostly a walker but I would really like to become a runner.  Here is my question for you.  What type of shoe would you recommend?  Is there something specific that you like?  I have had someone look at my feet, the way I step, and my old shoes.  They told me my feet are normal and that I do not necessarily need anything specific as far as a specialty shoe goes.  Help!  I need honest opinions on SHOES and not suggestions to have people check out my feet/gait.  Thanks!

It Was Wonderful

It is no secret that I am NOT a morning person, so this five in the morning stuff is no picnic!  The coffee is set to brew at 4:43.  The alarm is set for 4:45.  I typically hit the snooze button at least once.

Luckily the snooze on my phone is only in five minute increments.  When I phone was new, I HATED this.  Over time, I have learned to appreciate that 5 minutes do not allow me to get back into as deep of a sleep as the more common, 9 minute snooze that I was used to.  Somehow this morning, in my sleep induced, entirely too early morning coma, I turned my phone off instead of hitting snooze.  Again, I am NOT a morning person.

After thinking I had hit snooze and falling back asleep I thought "Wow... (insert some zzz's here)... that's a long five minutes...", and pried one eye open to look at the clock.  When it registered that the bright red numbers on the clock read 5:03, I forced myself to get up and throw on some mismatched clothes to go meet my walking partner.

***Kris, THANK YOU for accountability!  Knowing that you are up and will be waiting makes me get up and going!  I know I am not totally with it when I see you, but it makes my entire day better.  Love you girly!***

When I got into the car to head over for our walk I flipped the radio to klove.  They were praying.  It was wonderful.  A great beginning to my day.  I prayed with them as I drove the few blocks to my destination.  Yes, I drive just a few blocks because it is still dark and I do not want to walk over there alone and half asleep.  Plus it gives me a few quick seconds to inhale my black coffee.

 After we finished our walk, I drove home.  For some reason as I was parking the car, I looked over and noticed my Bible sitting in the passenger side floorboard.  Let me just say that I know better!  Growing up I was taught to respect the word.  We do not throw it, or leave it lying around on the floor.  This is something that I have become too careless of and I was convicted this morning.  I reached down, picked it up, and decided to get to reading!

I walked in and the kids were still asleep.  Mike was getting ready for work.  It was so quiet in my house.  Just me and the dog, I was practically alone.  Do you hear that???

Silence... 

Ahhh...

One thing I decided when I first started this 5am walking absurdity is that I REFUSE to go back to sleep when I get home... even if the kids are asleep and the house is quiet.  It was tough the first few days, but now I am used to it and actually kind of enjoy it.

My kids are early risers.  From the moment my first child was born, I have rarely had the NEED to set an alarm.  Both have an internal alarm clock (Yes, I truly believe this!) that typically goes off every morning at about 6:15... ALWAYS by 7:00.  They have both been this way since birth.  Needless to say, it is not quiet for very long after arriving home from my walk.

I decided that TODAY I WILL start MAKING myself STOP long enough to open my Bible and dive into the word.  This is something that I know is SO IMPORTANT, yet is so easy to put off until later.  Many times later becomes tomorrow, which becomes the next day... the Bible ends up in the floorboard... you get the picture.

After pouring my second cup of coffee, I sat down on the couch and grabbed the computer.  "No Facebook.", I uttered to myself.  I have a horrible habit of checking my Facebook before doing anything else on the computer.  This morning I was determined to get straight to my quiet time... while it was quiet.

I skimmed several websites while looking for ideas and soon realized that I hadn't even stopped to talk to God.  "FREEZE, BETH."  I stopped what I was doing right then and there and went to my heavenly father in prayer.  As soon as I was done I found a blog that looked interesting.  It is actually a video blog study done last summer through Precept Ministries.  It focuses on Hebrews chapter 11.  I am hooked.

You are actually supposed to use a book with the study, but I am going to read and study the WORD on my own and then watch the videos to supplement.  Let me just say that Hebrews 11 is GOOD!  I know I have read through it many times before, but there is just something about focusing for a longer period of time on a specific passage.  It really sinks in and I allow myself to do more than just surface reading.

In today's video, she speaks about APPROVAL.  Whose approval are you seeking?  It has me thinking for sure!

Here is a verse that stood out to me today...

"And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."   
-Hebrews 11:6


Now let me be clear, I am not stressing the part about being rewarded.  The first part of the verse hit me hardest.  Try reading it again...

"And without faith it is impossible to please him..."

WHO am I trying to please?

Who are YOU trying to please?  

Do you have a daily quiet time?  What works best for you?  I strongly encourage you to do this.  You will not regret giving a few quiet moments to go deeper into HIS word!


I will close by telling you that God granted me a FULL HOUR of quiet time today.  BOTH of my children slept until after 7am.  This is BIG stuff, people!  It was wonderful.  

Trying Something New

I have thought about this for several days and decided to try something completely different.  I will be 31 on 31!  Instead of weighing myself everyday, I am not going to weigh myself until my birthday, August 31st.  Yep, that is right.  I am not going to weigh myself for two and a half months.  At least that is what I am going to try to do.  We'll see how it works out.  I may weigh myself at some point this week just to see where I am and then go from there.  Wish me luck!

I have still been running/walking.  Not sure if I posted this previously, but I have also been going at 5am with a friend.  We walk two miles in about 30 minutes.  That is a BIG DEAL for me!  I am NOT a morning person, so this is VERY good for me!  Knowing that my walking partner, Kris, is going to be up and waiting motivates me to get my tail out of bed and get moving.
Our 5am walks have worked out well because Jessica, Lacey and I have not been able to connect several of the days that we were supposed to run.  I still would REALLY like to do C25K though, so I will not give up.  Sorry about my crazy schedule, ladies!

So... it's VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL week!  I have the privilege of working with a group of precious three and four year old children, The Caterpillars, all week.  They are so fun!  I am constantly amazed at how much kids can learn.  They are not given enough credit!

Here is a picture of the outside of our room.  The kids love the taxi, which has a door that opens to go inside the classroom.  All the games, snacks, crafts and decorations are fun, but the REAL reason we are there is to show them and teach them about our awesome savior, Jesus Christ.

Yesterday we learned about a soldier who asked Jesus for help and that  "JESUS LOVED PEOPLE AND HELPED THEM"  -Matthew 14:14




The Faith of a Centurion-
   When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly."  And he said to him, "I will come and heal him."  But the centurion replied, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."  When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him,"Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.  I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."  And to the centurion Jesus said, "Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.  And the servant was healed at that very moment.  -Matthew 8:5-13

WHAT A DAY!!!

Okay today has been kind of odd.

1. Cam wanted to wear her shirt the "cool way that all the second grade girls do" by putting a rubber band around the edge of it.  You know, sort of like I did in the late 80's early 90's except they put the ponytail or rubber band/silly band in the BACK.  It is ridiculous and looks like she has a tail.  Hey, what does it hurt???  So yes, I allowed my daughter to do something I did back in the day except it was not NEARLY as cool as when I did it!  Choose your battles, right?

2. I had a couple of REALLY INTERESTING sightings:
          First, I spotted Sasquatch as I was on my way to help at the school.  He was in the round a bout at the same time I was.  I kid you not, he was driving a bright yellow truck.  I almost ran off the road looking at him!
          Second, there was a man smoking a corn cob pipe on the side of the road.  He was just standing there puffing away.  I will have to say, I have never seen an actual corn cob pipe, and this man looked NOTHING like Frosty.

3. I ran week two, day one of C25K!  It went so well.  I am super excited about this!  I also had the privilege of tripping and not falling on a crappy sidewalk, running through some stranger's automatic sprinkler (thanks, whoever you are!) and noting the time it was going for the future.  Yes, I will happily run through it again at 8:25pm.  I also had a MAJOR fail when I tried to surprise a friend by acting goofy and well... let's just leave it at that.  It did not quite go as planned.

I am loving life right now!  It is such a blessing to build relationships with new and different people.  Thanks, to my new running partners for putting up with my craziness!

And Then There Were Three!

Week two of running!  It is going well.  MUCH better than I expected.  There are so many people in this area that run!  I am actually friends with lots of people who run 5K's and even marathons.  Many times I have caught myself calling them "crazy runner people" and I can see why!  I could EASILY become one!  It is so exhilarating and almost addictive.  Hopefully I will be a crazy runner person here before long.  It would not be such a bad thing!


Today Lacey and I had a new addition to our run.  Another new runner!  I am so enjoying this.  It is time out for me with friends to do something healthy and kid free.  Please do not get me wrong, I LOVE my kids.  Every mom needs time for herself though, right?

Bye-Bye Sparkly Nails

Well a few weeks ago I splurged and got myself some sparkly pink nails.  They have been so fun!  I have not had acrylics in YEARS.  I love to have my nails done because my natural nails are HORRIBLE.  No matter what I do, I cannot grow them out.  They are thin and brittle.  I have my cosmetology license, so I have tried pretty much every professional product on the market.  Nothing works.  I was going to keep them up and get them filled and all that jazz BUT I decided instead to soak them off (not peel them!) and save my money for a new pair of running shoes!

This is my first goal and reward.  I have to run for however long it takes me to lose the remainder of the twelve pounds I had first decided to lose, then get the new shoes.  

I have already lost seven pounds so I need to lose five more.  This is a VERY attainable goal!  I wanted to lose twelve before we go to Florida in June.  I still have about three weeks.  If I lose the twelve before we go, then I get to take my new shoes and run in the awesome, tropical Florida sunshine.  What a great reward!

Today was only our second day to run.  The C25K thing is great!  I also think that having a great running partner helps!  It is so much more motivating to know I am not doing this alone.  Thanks, Lacey!

So my first long term goal I think will be to run the Valley Fest 5K.  I then would like to do the Soaring Wings Half Marathon.  Do you have any other suggestions???

What about shoes?  What are your favorites?  There are so many out there.  I would love to hear your personal opinions and experiences with specific brands.

Well, I need to go soak off the sparkly nails.  I am sure they will soon be replaced with some fun sparkly polish!

I Need Your Help

I have decided that I need to set some goals.  I need short term and long term.  This could be weight or exercise related.  Hopefully this will keep me motivated.

I also need to come up with some rewards for myself.  It would be good if most of these were inexpensive.  I am a full time mommy and student, so I do not have my own income to splurge all the time.  One thing I know I NEED is a new pair of running shoes.  Mine are OLD.  They were purchased at the beginning of last summer and I have worn them quite a bit.  I think this will possibly be my first goal and reward.  I do not know much about running, but I know good shoes are a MUST.

Do you have any creative or fun ideas?  What are your goals and rewards?  Do you have a favorite type or brand of shoes?  Remember I need to keep it practical and inexpensive!  Thanks for your help!

Yummy Snack!

Today is the day!  Day one of running.  My friend and I begin tonight.  She downloaded the Couch to 5K app on her phone to help us along.  Hopefully the rain will hold off and we will not have to postpone.  I have faith!

For the past few days, this quote keeps running through my head.  "Don't worry, everything is going to be amazing."  I know that it is true!  I am so happy right now.  Happy AND motivated.  Not being in school the past couple of weeks has been so nice.  I'm enjoying my time at home with my family.  My stress level is super low, which is totally out of the ordinary for me.  It's AMAZING!!!  Not being in school is also giving me more time to cook.  This allows me to make healthy meals for myself and my family.  It is nice!

So... I totally just passed up the Oreos and milk for key lime Fiber One yogurt and cinnamon graham crackers.

SCORE!

  

I will have to admit that this is tough.  I want those Oreos so bad, but I know they are NOT worth it!!!

For breakfast today I had an oats and peanut butter Fiber One bar and black coffee.

Lunch was a turkey sandwich on whole grain bread with reduced fat cheese and grapes, and iced tea.

I was hungry when I got home so I grabbed a handful of low sodium Pringles (which are pretty good!).

When I realized I was going to keep snacking on junk, I headed for the Oreos.  I opened the fridge to get out the milk and saw the yogurt on the bottom shelf.  Then I remembered the graham crackers.  I immediately changed my mind and headed back to the pantry to get the healthier snack.  As I was putting the Oreos away I began to recite a very familiar scripture:

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."  -Phillipians 4:13

One thing I have discovered in the last few days is that I HAVE to snack more during the day.  I am hungry.  I need to stop and take the time to grab even just a handful of grapes to get me through to my meal.   Do you have any suggestions of healthy, easy snacks?  This is a tough one for me.  What about on the go snack foods?

Finally... a Cure

Well folks, I have found a cure for my chocolate cravings.  This is HUGE!!!!!  

Here is the secret:  

Only buy dark chocolate.

Yep, that is all it is!  Pretty simple, huh?  I do not really like dark chocolate.  I do not crave it like I do milk chocolate.  So I am only going to buy dark chocolate to keep in the house.  When I have a craving, I grab a couple of dark chocolate Piecies, or a dark chocolate Hershey Kiss.  I also keep the Kisses in the freezer so they do not melt in my mouth like milk chocolate does.  Problem solved!  I do not even usually go for it, because I know I will not really like it.  We will see how long this works for me!

Do you have any secrets to curb your cravings?  I would love for you to share!

I Have a Running Partner!

So, my sweet friend, Miss Wacey (Lacey), sent me a text last week.  Apparently she heard from someone else that I am wanting to run.  My goal is to do the Soaring Wings Half in the fall.  This would be HUGE for me.  I have never even done a 5K.  I know that with HIM all things are possible... even this!


Now I know that this scripture is not at all about me running a race, but I am going to focus on this during the next few weeks.  It will not only help me keep my focus on what I am working toward, but also WHY I am here on this earth.  

"I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."  -Philippians 3:14

So now I need some help.  I am NOT a runner.  Do you have any tips for me.  What do I wear?  What do I eat?  What about shoes?  Do any of you local runners have a good running spot you would like to recommend?  What about good music for my ipod?  Any advice is welcomed!

My Newest Discovery... So Excited!!!

I just discovered that Lipton Cup A Soup is only 1 point per packet!  

This is with the old points system.  Not sure about the new.  I'm so excited about it!!!

I Heart Our Wii!

I think I have mentioned before that I weigh using our Wii Fit Board.  We don't even own a set of scales and to be honest, every time I look at them at the store and see how much a decent set costs, I decide I'm too cheap to spend the money.  We have a Wii, why don't I just keep using it?  It seems to be pretty accurate too.  I have used it just before going to the doctor just to be sure.  As long as I keep the batteries fresh, I think it is just fine.  Especially today because it told me that I weigh......

wait for it................

are you ready??????????????

178.6!

Can you tell I'm happy about this?  YES!  I am!  Here is just one more reason that weighing daily works for me:

My mom and I have a Starbucks date planned for this morning.  I was SERIOUSLY considering getting breakfast there.  They have some YUMMY food!  Do not get me wrong, Starbucks does offer some healthier options.  The only problem is that the things I really like are the things that tend to be the worst for me, and NOT so healthy... imagine that!  

So after weighing and seeing that I am down more, I have chosen to wait on that cheese danish, pumpkin bread (my favorite), or reduced-fat cinnamon swirl coffee cake.   This will be my reward when I hit 175.  My stipulation is that I will only eat half of it then and either throw the other half away or share with a friend (Lisa???).  I do not NEED the entire thing!

I am also thinking I will skip my drink of choice, a skinny, soy, venti caramel macchiato or skinny, soy, venti peppermint mocha, and just go for some simple black coffee.  I LOVE coffee and spending time with my sweet MOM so it is still a treat!

What are your favorite treats?  Do you have a set of reasonably priced scales you would like to recommend? Any suggestions for rewards or goals for myself?  I would love to hear from you!

Have a wonderful day!

Mindless Eating - Today Show With Matt Lauer

Changing Things Up a Bit (4/18/11)

Okay, I have NEVER posted before and after pics.  I honestly did not take any the first go round.  Sure wish I would have!  SO... tonight I WILL have Mike take some yucky "fat" pics of me and I'll post them tomorrow.  Fun stuff, huh?  I am finally going to do this because I know it will motivate me.  Something has got to give!
I just weighed.  I weighed later in the morning and had already gotten into my jeans and outfit for the day.  I'm going to use that as my excuse that I've gained 1 pound.  :(

182... yuck.  It is okay though because it is a new day of a new week!  

It is Easter week!  We had the opportunity to spend yesterday with the sweetest little group of 2 year olds, the Honeybees.  I really think Mike may enjoy subbing in their class more than I do.  It is TOO cute!  Yesterday we taught the Honeybees all about Palm Sunday.  They were so sweet as they waved their palm branches and shouted their verse.

"Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord."  -John 12:13

Today's breakfast is YUMMY!  Last week I posted about the Cinnamon Chex with raisins.  Today I cut up some strawberries and put them on top and it's WAY better!!!

Cinnamon Chex, Sliced Strawberries, and Skim Milk

My word of the week is going to be NEW.  I've chosen this word because it is a reminder that HE makes all things NEW... even me!

Weigh In Day... What's That???

I tried having a specific day to weigh myself.  I would weigh myself on Mondays and that was the only day I allowed myself to look at the numbers.  You know what?  It did NOT work for me!

After a few weeks of consistently doing this, I started telling myself "I will eat real good today to make up for the weekend and then weigh tomorrow.".  Sure you will, Beth!  

Well, one day turned into two, which then turned into three, which turned into two weeks!  Two weeks of eating anything I wanted because I knew that the next day I was going to DO something about it!  Um... not so much.

Monday I started fresh.  I am weighing myself daily.  This is what works for ME.  I know experts say do not do this, but hey, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!  I don't grieve over a little gain because I see daily how much weight can fluctuate.  No big deal!

Monday I was 182.8.  Today I am 179.9!!!  I know this could just be a glitch in my scales or something, but now that I am back under 180 (even if it is only by a tenth of a pound) I am MOTIVATED to stay here!!!!!   See, weighing daily isn't such a bad thing.  

Happy Wednesday!

Oh... My... GROSS!

So, I got brave and finally had Mike take some fat pics.  Let me tell you, they ARE fat pics!!!!  My first thought after seeing them was how disgusting I look.  YUCK!

Here ya go, folks...

I think my love handles have handles!

Wow.

Yeah, I definitely need to get a tan on those arms.

I promise there's no baby in there!

Well, I did it.  I can visibly see what I look like.  These pictures were not edited.  I wanted to keep it as real as possible.  My plan is to take pics in the same clothing about once a month until I'm satisfied... we'll see how long that takes!