The Ride

I think I mentioned in one of my previous posts that I received a new bike for Christmas. When I asked for it, both my mom and dad looked at me as if I were crazy, but I really wanted one so it went on my list. My justification at the time was that we lived on a very busy street and my two children were ALWAYS begging to ride around the block. That made me extremely nervous. When I was their age, I was gone for hours at the time in the neighborhood and in the woods, but times are so different now. I like to be able to look out the window and see my babies. Since I was really nervous about it, I would never let them go unless they were in a pack of 3 or 4 children and not just 2. I guess that just made me feel safer but not completely. That is when I decided that I would get a bike and ride with them.

Christmas came and upon walking into mom and dad's it was immediately know that my request had been accepted. My bike was wrapped in a big Christmas "trash bag". I was so excited. We took it home and Doug immediately adjusted the handlebars and the seat for me. I couldn't wait to ride it but it was dark and cold. Well, it has remained cold and I have really not had the chance to take the kids on a bike ride yet...until last night.

When did it become so painful to ride a bike? Now I know that it has been years since I have flown through my grandparent's yard on my bright blue Good Vibrations bicycle, but has it really been that long? Am I really that out of shape? My knees were in pain. My calves were screaming at me. What in the world was I thinking. Emily and Chandler were flying past me, standing up peddling and swerving all over the road. I was scared to death. People would drive by us and wave, but I couldn't wave back. If I even thought about lifting my arm, I felt like I was gonna fall right over! By the time we got home, 15 minutes later, I was out of breath, my legs were numb, and my hinney, oh my hinney...there are no words!

Since my diet began 3 weeks ago, I have been exercising on the Wii Fit and walking a little bit. The exercise has slowed lately due to sickness and just the fact that I tend to be a little lazy, but now I am even more determined!!! I am going to master this bike! I am gonna show it who's boss and I am not going to let it defeat me. I will ride for longer than 15 minutes without feeling like dying once I hit the driveway. Lance Armstrong, watch out!!!!

Diet Soda Cake - my new low point friend!!!!

Ok, so I love browsing the WW message boards. One of my favorites is the Recipe Review board. I love to cook (I know that's hard to believe) and have got many great ideas from WW members all over the world. It is so amazing how people from all over the country cook. Like, what in the world is quinoa? It is a big thing apparently!

While browsing the Recipe board today, I found a low point dessert that many people were just raving over and I thought I would share. It is called Diet Soda Cake. Very easy to make. My family gave it a 2 thumbs up tonight. There are many variations, so just pick and choose your favorite mix and drink and get to baking!

Diet Soda Cake

1 box cake mix (any kind)
1 can diet soda (any kind)
1 small box sugar free/fat free pudding (any kind)
2 egg whites
light cool whip

Put all ingredients in your mixer and mix/bake according to the box directions.

Let cool and top with a dollop of cool whip. You can also take another box of pudding and mix with the cool whip for added flavor.

Tonight I used a german chocolate mix with Cherry Coke Zero. You do not have to use the pudding in the mix but many said it made it more moist. I used chocolate.

This is a 4 point dessert!

1st Weigh In Day

Today was my first weigh in day! I never wake up early on Saturdays. I absolutely refuse to get out of bed before nine, but this morning was different. I was so excited, I woke up at 7:45 to hit the scale and see my first results. I was nervous. The week has been fairly easy. Have I been hungry? Yes, to the point of tears, but that was my fault, I should not have waited until 8:30 to cook dinner Wednesday night. That will never happen again!!!! I have to learn to plan ahead. Since I am in class on Monday and Wednesday night, the crock pot is going to be my new best friend, so if you have a good recipe, please send it to me.

Counting my points has not been difficult either. I even got to eat chicken fried chicken and hash brown casserole at Cracker Barrel last night. I have learned how to budget my points. In the WW plan, you get so many points per day and then you get almost a whole day of points extra to spread out through the week. If you save those extra points, you will most likely lose more, but they are there to splurge with. You can truly eat anything you want, you just have to learn to budget and decide what you really want to use those points for.

So, what did I lose this week? 7 Pounds! I am so excited. This hasn't been a full week, I started Tuesday, but I choose Saturday as my weigh in day. I thought if I planted it slap dab in the middle of the weekend, I would be less likely to REALLY mess up. I was worried that this was a little to easy and that a couple of days I might have miscalculated even though I measured and counted twice, but I think this week has proven to me that I CAN do this. Thanks for all the encouragement! I means the world to me!!

I'm Losing It!

When I first set out to blog, I thought I would just randomly post whatever came to mind. I have done that, but very sporadically. I love to write and thought I might have something to say, but am never at the computer when the idea hits, and by the time I get to the computer, I have forgotten everything I was going to write. Forgive me, I am getting older and I do have 2 young children...is that a good enough excuse? In the past week, I have set out on a new path. I have a new goal and I plan on sharing it with my friends, family and anyone who cares or needs a bit of encouragement. I want to encourage, but I also want encouragement.

As most of my friends and family know, I LOVE FACEBOOK! I check it morning and night. I love reading what people have to say and I love looking at everyone's pictures. Every once in a while a post will really stick with me. It may be funny or cute, political or religious, sad or just something that tugs at my heart strings. Well, earlier this week, one of my FB friends inspired me. She is going about it a little differently than I am, but we both have the same goal...TO LOSE IT! Lose what you say...WEIGHT, FAT, BLUBBER, whatever you want to call it! So, from now on, this blog is not just about Hope, but about LOSS...weight loss.

If you have known me for years, you know that I have NOT always looked like I do now. I was never skinny, but was ALOT thinner. I will never be 120 pounds, my big bones probably weigh that much, but I would love to weigh a lot less than I do. Take the journey with me if you wish, I would love to encourage you. Sit back and watch me, keep me on task or an encouraging word would be greatly appreciated. Share advice or silly "chunky girl" stories. I have many to tell. I will share things that I experience, the good and the bad. Now, I will not post my weight. I will post how much I have lost and maybe, just maybe, if I stick this out and get close to my goal, I will give up the starting weight. We will see!

Let me give you the details: I am following the Weight Watcher's plan and am counting points. I am not attending meetings, but have joined online. I figured if I was paying, then I would be more apt to stick to it. I am exercising. I am not doing The Biggest Loser type, run till you puke, exercises. I have a Wii Fit Plus that I am using. I LOVE IT! I am also walking and riding my new bicycle (thanks Mom and Dad)! If I come across something wonderful like a recipe or weight loss gadget, I will share and please share with me. This is going to be challenging, but I am going to try to make it fun!

So here we go!!! I"M LOSING IT!!!!

Me in 1995



Me Now

Shortcut Cookie Cookbook Giveaway!

Go to my favorite recipe blog: http://picky-palate.com/ and register for the Shortcut Cookie Cookbook giveaway! Register to win a cookbook and browse the blog for some great recipes!!! Camilla Saulsbury was the winner of Food Network's Ultimate Recipe Showdown Best Cookie!

The Black Sister

Oh, for the love of a dog! So many say "oh, it's just a dog, get over it", but she was not just a dog, she was my black sister. We lost our dear sweet Winnie in August and the wounds are healing, but very slowly. Not a day goes by that I don't think about her. Winnie was priviledged. She never wanted for a thing for she had more than any dog could ever know to want. Multiple yum-yums (or YY's for short) a day, a toy basket and only the best chair in the house. As a puppy, she was spunky and playful. She helped mom with the newspaper every morning and was always doing yardwork with dad. Every so often, I got a phone call from Mom saying that my Black Sister wanted to talk to me and yes, sitting in front of everyone at work, I would talk to Winnie on the phone and yes, sometimes she would talk back. Embarassed, maybe at first, but I just think the ones that laughed were just jealous that their furbabies didn't call them during the day.

As Winnie got older, she got wider and greyer but still ever so loving. Winnie's only drawback was her "gator" mouth! You didn't dare get your fingers near her big pearly whites when there was a YY or any type of food between them. Her "gator" mouth was only fitting, since she was a HUGE Florida Gator fan. She was always dressed in her gator attire, collar and bandana, as well as her gator leash. Sure makes a Sissy proud!

Winnie was well known throughout the Houston Woods subdivision. She wandered the streets visiting from house to house. We tried once to keep her in the yard, but the invisible fence had nothing on Miss Winnie. She would sit at the edge of the yard contemplating and building her courage up. Finally, one mad dash, a loud yelp and she was gone! Not once did she dash the invisible fence to come back home though. She always waited for someone to come take her collar off and let her in. She was pretty smart. I wish I could thank everyone in the neighborhood for being so kind to her and watching for her as they drove to and from their homes everyday. She wasn't the only dog that took "daily constitutionals" around the neighborhood, but I think she was the most regular.

Winnie had a best friend, Beau. Beau lives two doors down at the Williams' home. He came down everyday at the same time to play with Winnie. The would play in the yard, go for walks, and I would assume, just chit chat. Beau liked YY's too. He would wander in the house and out if the door was open, but was always polite. I think Winnie's death has been really tough for Beau. Talking to dad the other day, Beau still comes to the house regularly, but only on Sundays. He will come walking up on the back porch, still waiting on his YY and then lay down and rest. I'd like to think he lays there thinking of all the fun he had with our Winnie and how he misses her so much. We know how much he misses her, because we miss her too!

Mom and Dad's house will never be the same without Winnie. I really just cannot remember a time when she wasn't there. There is a definite void. It is a lot quieter and the presence of black hair everywhere is gone. There are no little toenails tapping on the hardwood floor or her ever so excited bark when she's standing at the pantry door waiting on a treat. She is missed greatly, but her memory will live on. In our hearts and in the hearts of those that has the pleasure of knowing and loving her too. I even think Elton, the bird, misses her, but he is a completely different post!

Thank you, Winnie, for the memories! We love you!

What happened to giving thanks and turkey?

Since when did the Christmas season begin in early November? Every year it seems we start a little earlier putting up lights, trees and blow-up Santas. For some reason, this year it is really bothering me. I love the Christmas season, don't get me wrong, but we seem to forget that there is a holiday inbetween Halloween and Christmas and it too is very important, at least to me it is.

Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks and a time for reflection before the Christmas season. A time to remember and prepare for the coming joy that is Christ's birth. In our busy lives, we often forget to give thanks. We many say a blessing at dinnertime, but has that just become routine? Are we really thankful for our many blessings and our food and the fact that we are fed by HIS hands? Take time this Thanksgiving week to remember and give thanks where thanks is due. Thank God for your many blessings, but just don't bulk them into a 5 line prayer before a meal. Sit down with God, talk to Him and thank Him for specific blessings. Spend a little extra time with the Father, for He is the provider, Jehovah Jireh, and without Him, there would be nothing worth celebrating this holiday season.

What are you Thankful for?

OK, I'm Back

Blog attempt #3...I know, I know, I have said I was going to begin blogging again several times, but this time I am promising myself that I will keep this up. I have to do this for me! I have got to have a way of release, a way to express what is going on with me. My blog has to be that for me right now. I know what I say at times may not make a bit of sense, but just bear with me. I have much to say, but no one to share the deep details with, so I am releasing it to the world in whatever way I can. Crazy, maybe...but I hope a way for me to get out of this pit I am in and back to the real me. She is so lost and I have got to pull her out somehow. Please pray with me and for me, as I need it more than ever. I have to once again find the hope.

There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off. Psalm 23:18

Next Blog

I love reading other blogs. They are full of information, history, photos and really just about anything you can imagine. I have several that I follow on a regular basis, a dear friend, a beloved mentor/teacher, a band, a preacher, an artist among others. I love reading about what is going on in other's lives and what they find to be important/interesting enough to publish for the world to see. Although I love blogs of those I know and love, I also love the unknown. One of my absolute favorite things to do is hit the "Next Blog" button. You know what it is...that little button at the top of the page, just about in the middle. I'm not quite sure how it sorts, but it is just like opening a present!!! Something exciting with every click. Today I saw a blog that showed friends wandering around Spain and then a grandmother of four grandchildren just starting off in the blogging world. I saw one that was "One Picture a Day from Tokyo" and then the next was a young lady selling handmade make-up products. Many blogs are in foreign languages that are impossible to translate, but so much fun to try and figure out while others are completely unknown because they are typed in chinese or some foreign script. Take the time to skip through blogs. You may find your next favorite to follow. I will every once in a while link one that I find exciting or just worth following.

I'm Back

I am going to make a concerted effort to blog...I have so much to say and never say it. My life is busy and my family keeps it memorable. My plan is to share that with you here. Stay tuned for the next chapter in Hope Among Us.

How Can You Get Mad...

For those of you who know my children, you know that Emily is laid back and my little free spirit. Chandler on the other hand is straight to the point, and sees in black and white, there is no in between. I have been trying to get both of my children to clean their rooms for several days. It was too the point that I was going to pull everything out of their rooms to make them clean them. Finally, Saturday, they decided to mind me and clean. All was going well until I noticed that Chandler was missing. I thought maybe he had sneaked outside, so I went looking for him. I called and called and no answer. I just knew that he had gone down the street to his friend's house without telling me. I was MAD! As I walked back into the house to check for him one more time, Chandler started to walk out of his room. I asked him what he had been doing and why he wasn't cleaning his room. With a straight face, he looked at me and said, "Momma, I was reading my bible." I tried to look at him with a straight face, but began to laugh. How in the world could I get onto him for reading his bible instead of cleaning his room, "No Chandler, you are not supposed to be reading your bible, you are supposed to be cleaning your room", is the absolute wrong response! I was at a loss for words...that's my Man. All business, all the time.

I cannot believe...

As you know, I am the mother of two adorable children. They are the joy of my life and my whole world. When they are happy, I'm happy, if they are hurt, I am hurt. My oldest was hurt today by someone she should be able to trust. Someone she should look up to and respect. When I received the phone call, I was shocked; speechless. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. How could someone in that position do something like that. I called my mom, my mother in law, and a dear friend and nobody had an answer as to what I should do. I was angry and upset, and after discussing it with my husband and everyone else, I was even more upset. Why my little girl??? Then it dawned on me that I was more upset about it than she was. She was mad, and hurt physically, but emotionally she appeared fine. I think after a few days, she will forget that it ever happened and go on with her life as usual. Children are resilient, I just wish I was more like that. The story is not over though, I intend to make sure that this never happens again, to any child, especially mine. There will be a meeting in the morning! My hope for this situation is that this person realizes that she is in the wrong line of work and that she finds a position more suitable for her. My hope for Emily is that this is forgotten and that trust, respect and faith in others, remains. She's my trooper, she will be ok and so will I, after a good meeting and alot of prayer.

My First Blog

I cannot believe that I am finally blogging!!!! I love to write. It is a passion of mine but something I rarely get to do as I am so busy. But I am going to make an effort to share my life, stories and goings-on with anyone who wants to listen/read. I am a mother, wife, friend, daughter, co-worker, lover of Christ, sister, and a woman eager to live each day to the fullest. I will be totally honest here and hopefully through my journey, you will learn with me and from me, be encouraged, and see that there is "Hope Among Us".