Think like a thin person.....

I am reading a book called "The Dr. Beck diet solution"......learning to think like a thin person. I am also going through it with my Wellness coach each week. It's been wonderful so far. I have to read my reasons for losing weight every morning. I have to follow her tips daily, and plan my eatting and exercising. I can use any "diet" I want, along with her program. It's been simple to do and a lot of fun. I lost 6 lbs in the first 3 weeks so it's working. :)

As of this past week I have lost 36lbs, and 3 dress sizes. I went shopping on Saturday with birthday money and got some really cute clothes. It was actually fun to go shopping for the first time in a long time.

I am running my first 5K on Saturday. I am totally nervous because I am afraid that I won't do as well as I had planned. I am doing so much better than I was when I first started running, but when I begin to compare myself to others I realize how far I still have to go. Which bums me out. That's true with most every aspect of weight loss. The "it's not fair" syndrome. Which I talked about a few posts ago. Each day is a new day and I am taking one step at a time. And honestly I am really enjoying myself along the way. It's just a struggle that I will deal with for awhile.

So please keep on praying. I know that I have asked that a lot but it's all I know to do in a time of struggles. I want this to be a permanent change in me. I know I will always have to keep in in check, but I want a thin active lifestyle from her on out. For both me and my family.

Single parents

I am a "single parent" this week. Nick left this morning for a work trip to St. Louis. He will stay in a fancy hotel, and get up early and stay up late, going to work meetings, tours of gardens, and "networking" with other Horticulturist. I will be home with 3 little girls who want to be contantly entertained (and yes I am sure they get that from me.) :) Tomorrow is my 29th birthday and I will spend it going to the free movie at the mall with the girls. I think we are going to go see the Veggie Tales movie. :) Then tomorrow night my parents are taking me out to Olive Garden (my pick), and I will end the day with a run. The rest of the week we have MOPS swim day at the Y, gymnastics lessons, MOPS playdates, a beach day with my parents, shopping for clothes (my gift from my parents), and 3 services of church. And you know what I am thrilled. I am happy that my dh has a job that sends him off to learn more and meet new people. I am happy that I get to spend so much time with my kids doing stuff that they enjoy. I am happy that I have family and friends to hang out with while he is away. I am just feeling very blessed.

Oh I am also happy that my dh bought me a netbook before he left. :) I am using it right now.

And tonight when I ran to the store Avery wanted to pick out a birthday card for me from her and one from Sage (Sage was at gymnastics at the time). And they spent an hour coloring and writing me notes that I will get to see tomorrow at dinner. For that I feel incredibly blessed!

I hope today you have had a chance to find the blessings in your life.

Avery

My grown up girl went to her first day/night of camp yesterday. She was so very excited. A friend of hers went with her and they had top bunks next to each other. They were about as giggly as two little girls can be. And I think I was just as excited as they were. :) I had such fond memories of my own summer camp days. I went to Sunset Bible Camp. http://www.sunsetbiblecamp.org/ Yesterday while preparing Avery for camp I had to look it up and see what was going on. Other than expanding and adding some lake activities it hasn't changed much. It was neat to see the pictures. :)

The first thing out of Sage's mouth this morning was "when do we get to pick up Avery". I think it's cute that she misses her sister. :)

Life's not fair

Life's not fair........
I say this to my girls, especially my oldest, frequently. However I also need
to hear it frequently. Why can my husband eat 3 huge meals a day plus snacks
and still struggle with putting on a few pounds while I drive by McDonald's
and smell the French fries and gain 3 pounds. Why do your kids wake up with a
fever on the day you have plans to get a sitter. Why does the car break down
when you finally have a little money in the bank? Life's just not
fair.............but our pastor today at church told us that life doesn't
"seem" fair. God sees the big picture, we see through our own eyes a
tiny little blurb of the picture. God doesn't make bad things happen to us,
but he does sometimes allow them. Even Jesus himself prayed in his last days on
earth asking God to spare him the pain of death on the cross if at all possible.
But also asking for "not my will but yours be done". I am sure that
Jesus wanted to stomp his foot and whine and cry and yell "life's not
fair". It wasn't fair that Jesus died on the cross for OUR sins, and
it's not fair when nap time runs short on the day that we need it the most.
The good news it that God gives up hope when life doesn't seem fair. He
uses bad for good, he loves us more than we can even imagine, and he uses
adversity to help us find hope. Romans 5:3-4 (NIV) "Not only so, but we
also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces
perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."
So today or this week or next month when faced with a "life's not
fair" moment, I hope we can all stop and remember what Jesus has done for
us.

Summer

Today feels like the first officialy day of summer break. We had a crazy weekend that just kind of meshed with last week, so it didn't feel like summer break.

So this morning I took Avery and Sage to VBS at the Presb. Church. Avery was super excited because Callie was in her group. And Sage's little friend from MOPS was in her class. So I had happy girls. They really had a great time. While they were there I put Capri in the stroller and walked the lake trail. From start to the end and back it's 5 miles and I did the whole thing. I plan on doing this every day this week.

After I picked up the girls from VBS we went to the library. Avery got her very first library card, and she got a summer reading log. We checked out some books for both girls. If they read 10 books a week they can turn in the log and get a prize. I also started Avery on her summer homework packet which she is having fun doing. :)

So I'd say our summer is off to a really great start. Exercise, friends, fun, warm weather, school work, books, library....... Doesn't get much better than that.

Great day

Saturday: Saturday I went on a 3 mile walk, and 1 mile run. It was super hot outside but it was still really nice. I've got 4 more weeks until my 5K and I am working super duper hard on my weight loss right now too. I am feeling great! After lunch we headed to some friends of ours for a nice afternoon swim and cookout. After dinner we played Phase 10 and just had fun laughing with them.

On Sunday: I got to sleep until 8 a.m. Then we went to an awesome worship service at our church. They did a "Celebrate Recovery" service, and we got to hear some amazing testomony about God's grace, and changed lives. We had a nice lunch with my parents, and then came home and I got a load of laundry started. Then a friend picked me up, we picked up another friend and headed to the movies. The movie was funny and we got a great laugh. Then we went to dinner and just got to sit and chat.

I really just had a nice weekend. Every once in awhile it's nice to just slow down and spend time with our family, friends, and get a few things done around the house. It's a nice break from the weekly chores and errands that need to be done. It's refreshing. Praise God for giving us some really great friends to enjoy weekends like this with.

Wellness Couch

This spring I took a bible study led by Kim Avery. She is a Life coach by profession. Starting today she became my Wellness coach. For the next 10 weeks we will be talking on the phone once a week as she guides me in making some lifestyle changes for a healthier life. I am super excited. We are going to read through a book called "The Beck diet solution", which is about retraining how we think about food. Please say a prayer for me, that through this book, the talks with Kim, and my own personal choices I can make some real lifestyle changes that will improve my health.