I've Been Thinking....

I've really been doing some deep, life-reflecting thinking lately, and I'm one of these people that I have to get these thoughts out of my head. Otherwise, I'll go CrAzY!!!! There are 4 things in my life that I am absolutely passionate about, and they are my Faith, Family, Cooking/Baking, and Movies. It seems as if every week, if not everyday, all topics are brought into my life in some fashion. So, I've decided to make a commitment to myself to blog about those 4 topics and have appropriately designated them as such: 

Spiritual Sunday

Movie Monday

Recipe Thursday

Family Friday

So..... Here we go ................. 

Spiritual Sunday

I recently purchased Beth Moore's book called Breaking Free. It's about discovering who you truly are spiritually and who you want to become. I've only read a few pages in it, and yesterday, I forgot it in my mother-in-law's car. :( So... I'm going to have to either wait until I see her again, or ask her to mail it to me. 

Going to Church: This topic has been heavy on my heart and mind lately. It seems that every week, Brandon and I have the same discussion: "You want to go to church this Sunday?" Our responses to one another are always the same, "Yes." However, we seem to struggle with the actual action of going. The desire to attend church to strengthen our spirit is there, but we lack on following through. For myself, it's comparable to working out. I want to work out, but actually following through with it is something completely different. How do we break out of this bad habit????? I hope and pray we figure it out soon enough. 

I hope everyone has a great week! GOD BLESS!

2011 Resolutions

I'm welcoming 2011 with open arms! I'm so ready for a new year, new decade, and new beginnings! Why am I so happy? Let's just say 2010 was not a fun year for me. There were more downs than ups, more tears than laughter, & more funerals than babies/weddings. 

UPS: Celebrated 1 year wedding anniversary; Got a puppy; Bought a Trailblazer; Lost 10 lbs; Bought our 1st home; Reconnected with old friends.

DOWNS: My Gpa died; Brandon's Gpa and Step-Gpa died; Gained back the 10 lbs; Had to sell our Trailblazer to get the house; Was under a freaakkish amount of stress because of process of buying a home.

I really want to change this and want to enjoy life more. I realize life is filled with sadness and departure just as much as it is filled with happiness, cheer, and birth. I also realize that I am, really, the only person who can create my happiness. Therefore, RESOLUTIONS are in order! 

2011 Resolutions

1. Get Healthy

Ever since Brandon and I got married, I've gained 25 lbs, and I'm determined NOW more than ever to get healthy! Being healthy, to me, means working out, lots of H20, lots of veggies, and lots of fruit. 

2. Run in 2 5ks

I used to run and was active all the time. Running was a release for me, and I can't for the life of me remember why I stopped running! So, I want to run regularly.

3. Join a Local Church

Brandon and I have lived in our new town for almost 6 months now, and we haven't found a home church yet. SO, this is going to change. Both of us grew up going to church and miss it dearly. Welcome the church hunt! 

4. Finish Decorating the House

We've lived in our home now for almost 6 months, and there are still rooms that I haven't finished yet. So, this year, I'm determined to finish the house! 

5. Take More Pictures

I realize I don't take enough pictures. I always seem to forget to take my camera along with me to any family gathering, event, or function we attend. Therefore, I want to take more pictures, and I WILL! 

6. Enjoy Life
Since last year was not a kind year, I want this year to be different. I want to get out and enjoy life more. We really didn't go anywhere and get away. I want to change that. So, in May, we are going to get out and get away to Carolina Beach, North Carolina! I soooo can't wait! 

I can't wait to read others' resolutions! ENJOY and GOOD LUCK! 

Endings Bring Beginnings...

~HAPPY*NEW*YEAR~

Brandon and I rang in the new year last night by ourselves, which I'm so happy we did. We went out on a date to Colton's Steakhouse and then on to Best Buy, where we purchased Back to the Future Trilogy and Resident Evil: Afterlife. Along the way home, we made a pit stop in at Wal-Mart and bought some Sparkling White Grape Juice, brownie mix, and meat/cheese tray. YUM! 

We already had The Sound of Music because that was one of my Christmas presents (sorry... I didn't post anything about Christmas). When we got home, we watched the Sound of Music, but we had to pause it towards the end to cheer on the new year. After the Sound of Music, we watched the Resident Evil movie. I'm not that into scary/zombie movies. I get scared wwaaaaaayyyy too easily, so I DEFINITELY prefer Sound of Music. After the zombie film, it was past 3 am. YEAH... WAY PASSED MY BEDTIME! 

So, for today 1/1/2011, we are resting up (lol..). Here in a few hours, we will probably go in to Springfield and leisurely spend our day away. :) 

I hope everyone had a great and safe night! Happy New Year! 

A Newly Found Perception

Since I got married, I've gained weight. I've gained 15 lbs in the last 2 years. BLEHHHHHH.............................. So, off and on for a year now, I've tried to lose weight. Last spring, I was serious about it and lost 10 lbs. I lost those 10 lbs by joining http://www.sparkpeople.com/, doing cardio 5x a week and strength training 2x a week. SparkPeople is a great website that provides TONS of resources to help individuals gain control of their lives by changing their lifestyle. It allows a person to track their daily calorie intake, water intake, and fitness. It's amazing!

School ended and summer came. During the summer months, my husband and I bought a house, and I gained those 10 lbs back, easily. Now that my husband and I are settled in our new home and the new town, I'm ready to lose the weight, again.

At the end of November, I started the running program Couch-2-5K. I only completed 2 weeks of the program before I stopped due to sickness. Running while you are hacking and coughing is not fun. Trust me. I tried it. It's now mid-December, and I'm still overweight and haven't done any physical exercise in 2 weeks. During these 2 weeks, I've come to some realizations. I've come to the realization that I won't be losing any weight (on a conscious effort) before Dec 31st. I've come to the realization that I wasn't putting in enough effort before. Sure, I'm ready to lose the weight, but have I really put forth enough effort? No, I haven't. I wasn't tracking my calories. I wasn't drinking enough water. I wasn't cooking healthy. I wasn't buying enough fruits. I wasn't buying enough vegetables. Truly, for 2 weeks, the only thing I did was workout (running) consistently. To lose weight, I have to put forth more effort. I have to cook healthy. I have to eat healthy. I have to drink healthy. I have to workout for more than 2 weeks. I heard on the radio this morning that to lose weight, 20% comes from working out (cardio & strength train), and the other 80% is eating/drinking the right way.
SO............. Here's my conscious effort.
Effective January 1, 2011:
1. Joining a gym.
2. Cardio 4-6x per week.
3. Strength training 2x/week.
4. Sticking to 1200-1500 Calorie intake every day.
5. Tracking all 3 meals 5-6x/week.
6. Blogging EVERY DAY.
7. Cooking healthy (consciously) 5x per week.
8. Eating 2 fruits/day.
9. Eating 2 vegetables/day.
10. Drinking 8 cups of H20 every day.
I don't want to continue to fail at losing this weight and becoming healthy. I know I'm overweight. I know what weight I should be at. I'm not that far off from it. I know I can do it. I did it once, and I can do it again. I need to make conscious decision of making it a lifestyle change instead of a short-term change.

Now, just because I'm putting off my journey for another two weeks doesn't not give me free reign to do whatever the hell that I want. I'm still going to lightly monitor what I eat and drink. I just know it's going to be easier putting off this change until after the holidays. I didn't want to make this decision. I wish I was more assertive in the beginning and stuck to everything, but the reality is this: I didn't.
So, as of January 1, 2011, I'm going to jump on the bandwagon, with all the others, and I will begin being assertive. I will begin being diligent. I will begin being consistent. I will begin being conscious.

6 Months Later...

WOW... 6 months later, and I'm back on blogging!!!!  So many things have happened, and yet, I, once again, didn't take a whole lot of pictures to capture the moments. So, you'll have to bear with me on the lack of pictures. 

Right after my birthday (a.k.a., after my last blog), we took a trip to St. Louis for my birthday! We went to a STL Cardinals game with my cousin Lindsay, her husband Travis, their child Rae, my mom, my mom's friend/coworker Amy, my sister Kelli, Kelli's husband Cody, and their child/my nephew Matthew. It was a quick getaway and a much needed one at that.

 STL Arch June '10

This summer was a very stressful and rewarding summer. WE BOUGHT OUR FIRST HOME! I had no clue that it was going to be that stressful. It seemed like everyday I was on the phone with our loan officer and trying to supply her with the needed documents. It was so stressful that I cried everyday and gained the 10lbs that I had lost earlier that spring. So, after crying and gaining the weight back, it's rewarding because we own our home, and I love the feeling that I live in a house that WE own! 

Our First Home July '10

Summer soon faded into the fall, and school/my job began once again. This year, I'm not at the school I was assigned last year, which was Norwood. New speech therapists were hired by the same company that I work for; therefore, every speech therapist was assigned a different school than the one they were at last year. This year, I'm at Plato. I've now become accustomed to the kids and vice versa. In comparison to Plato and Norwood, overall, I prefer Plato. The reason why is the staff. Some of the staff at Norwood were a little difficult to get a long with and thought their sh*t didn't stink. However, at Plato, everyone is very laid back and very similar to the people that I grew up around, countryfied. 

Silver Dollar City 11-20-10

Soon after this picture was taken, I took a close look at all my recent pictures. I became disgusted with the way I looked. I knew I had to do something about it. So, I decided to starting the running program C25K (Couch 2 5K). I've only completed 2 weeks; haven't done the 3rd week yet because I've been sick. This coming week, I'm picking up where I left off and continuing on! 

Hopefully, I will continue to blog. I love blogging because it's a great way to "release" any frustration that I may have. 

Shine On!

Top 2 Tuesday: Guilty Pleasures

This weeks Top 2 Tuesday: Guilty Pleasures
There are a few things in life that I would consider a guilty please. Some would include Disney movies, HGTV, antiques, comedy shows, TLC, chocolate, cakes, pies, etc. However, those things really don't "define" to the mark on what I would consider my top two guilty pleasures. 
1. Bravo Tv

• Real Housewives (all cities)
• Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List
• Watch What Happens Live
• Flipping Out
• Millionaire Matchmaker
• Working Out

I just can't get enough of that channel! My all-time favorite show on Bravo is Real Housewives of New Jersey. I'm hooked BAD! I'm so hooked that my husband (who is a manly guy) knows the people and their names on that show because I watch it all the time! Oopps! Didn't know I was that bad! A CLOSE second is Kathy Griffin. Now, I know that woman is dirty, but I can't get enough of her! SHE CRACKS ME UP! I can turn that show on (or a comedy show that she's doing) at midnight, just to help me fall asleep, and low and behold, I'm sitting in bed laughing my head off because she's just so funny! 

2. COFFEE

I LOVE coffee. I love the smell, the taste, the warmth of coffee! If I could, I would drink coffee all day long. However, I think my body would react with body-jerking/shaking reactions! Lol... 

I hope everyone has a Timeless Tuesday! GOD BLESS!

6-14-10

Today is Monday, June 14, 2010. This day is a multitude of things: 1. Monday; 2. Flag Day; 3. My Birthday; and 4. My Grandparents' Anniversary.


1. Monday
Ughh... Mondays... What is it about Mondays that drive us, the people, CrAzY!?!?!?!?!??!?! I would REALLY like to know the answer to that question. The main thing that helps me get through my Mondays is a GREAT cup of coffee! 

2. Flag Day
I wonder if people realize that today is a holiday. Probably not because it's not a National Holiday where state and federal employees get to take off work for. I, however, do think this this should be an important holiday that people recognize because it's a holiday that focuses on one of the symbolic icons of the United States of America: the American Flag. I do take pride in the fact that I am an American. I LOVE USA! I just wish ALL US citizens took as much pride in being an American as I, and others, do. It's just my opinion, but if you don't like it here, GO SOMEWHERE ELSE! 

3. My Birthday

Today is my birthday. I am 25 years old. In other words a 1/4 of a century old. Wow... I'm not one of those people who hate and dread my birthday. Instead, I love it! For me, it's another reason to celebrate life and all of the blessings God has given you that year and pray and hope for more blessings to come in the next year.  

This birthday was definitely different-bad for me, which I will explain later on in this post. 

For my birthday dinner, my husband took me out to a local and amazing Mexican restaurant. I love salsa and can't ever get enough of it! After dinner, we drove on down to Dairy Queen for my favorite ice cream treat: Chocolate Extreme Blizzard! YUM! 

HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY TO ME!

4. My Grandparents' Anniversary

Ever since I was born, or rather can remember, I've always shared my birthday celebration with the celebration of my grandparents' anniversary because I was born on their anniversary; however, this year on this day was different. My grandfather passed away on 1-26-10. So, instead of a day of celebration, it was nothing but a day of sadness and remembrance for me. Oh, how I missed being able to celebrate this day alongside my grandparents, especially my Grandpa. And, oh, how I miss my Grandpa! 

My grandma called me this morning to wish me a "Happy Birthday". We ended up talking about their anniversary and my Grandpa. For myself and my Grandma, I had to stay strong while I was on the phone with her, and I was. However, when I hung up the phone, I let it all out. I couldn't keep it in any longer. At that moment, I was so glad that I was home and by myself because I just couldn't deal with it while around others. 

Sorry to bring sadness at the end of this post. I hope everyone had a better Monday than I did. GOD BLESS!