~ A New Day ~

That quote pretty much sums it up!! There is probably nothing else that i need to share other than that picture. WOW, it was such a powerful message to me this morning when i pulled up the computer. Every day i make a pledge to myself to make some changes with myself. And every day i find myself making the same pledge because the day before didn't quite pan out the way i planned. We have a busy weekend with soccer, working on our raised beds, getting our plants planted and doing some cleaning inside; but come Monday morning...i will be ready. I don't have a choice this time. I was on a healthy kick of eating well and exercising and then i am not sure what happened. I guess the busyness of life gets in the way! Hopefully i will be able to share with you how great things are going next week. HAPPY FRIDAY!

Sick of Sports (kinda)

I feel SO bad for using that title but that is exactly describes the feeling that i am experiencing and so is my poor baby Jackson! I think that kid is totally worn out from going non-stop with 1-2 (even 3 last spring) different sports per season that overlap. He has not a break from anything (a few summers included) since he was 4 years old. That has almost been 6 years!! We chose to only play soccer this spring (and not baseball also) because last spring basketball, soccer and baseball all overlapped from the end of January through March. It was tough, very tough. And myself, JJ and Jackson did not want to go through that again this spring. We are going to let Jackson enjoy his summer OFF and then rethink things for next fall and spring. Suggestions are greatly appreciated :o)

SPRING is HERE!

I love this time of year...time to clean things out, clean things up and get flowers planted. We spent the day yesterday doing just that. It was all on the backyard though. This year, we are adding a garden to our list of To-Do's so we will see how that goes. I am a little nervous about it but hope that it turns out ok. We got a lot of good advice from our neighbor, Brad, yesterday. We have contemplated doing either a raised bed garden or just tilling the area and planting in the ground...our final decision was to just do it like my dad did and plant in the ground. After hours of tilling yesterday, JJ and i decided today that it would be better just to bite the bullet and do raised bed gardens. HA! I guess all of the tilling was not a total waste because at least it marked the 2 places that we will add the raised beds. I cannot wait to get them made and get my lettuce, broccoli, bell peppers and strawberries planted. The other stuff isn't quite ready to plant time wise just yet. I have had my herbs planted for over a week now; my chives were still going strong from last summer!!

 I like the look of this...but not 4 tall.

Oh...what i wished that my home and garden looked like!!

I also got the back patio power washed and looking all sparkly clean. I just LOVE when the patio is that clean. It looks brand new. And i am just antsy waiting on my new patio furniture to be delivered. I ordered a new loveseat, 2 chairs and table for the back patio. That will make all the difference in the world. I still have to plant flowers in my window boxes and my hanging baskets and the flower bed but i am not sure just yet what i want to plant. But i cannot wait until it is all done!

* Worn Slap Out *

Ok...so i have not blogged in a few days. And that is because i decided that i was tired of it and i felt like it was something that i had to try to do daily. And who really reads this stuff??!! So i said i was not going to do it anymore. So why am i doing it today, you ask? I.HAVE.NO.IDEA. But while i am here, i will tell you that i left off on blogging about being scared to see what the next workout was...well, i did it. And i HATED it. I decided that i was not going to do it anymore after this past weekend so i didn't. And i mailed that bitch back. HAHA!! I could not stand those workouts. I have never dreaded doing a workout in my entire life. So, i am back to walking/running and i am going back to doing my Core Secret videos with Brooke Burke that are good and i loved them and never dreaded doing them and did not watch the clock the entire time i was doing it. Almost 8 more weeks until the BEACH so i have got to get in gear.

My view for 8 days!!

3 Days Strong!

Yesterday, i was pretty terrified to see what my workout of the day was. I had not even looked ahead in the training book that i have because i thought you did workouts 1-4 and then add the cardio workout in. So i put in workout 3 and once it started she mentioned weeks 3 & 4....WHAT??!! At that point, i was hoping that i had not messed up the two previous workouts. I pulled out the training schedule and come to find out, i did complete the first 2 workouts correctly. And workout 3 was going to be CARDIO! Thank goodness. I was happy that my legs did not have to go through a gluten again with lunges, etc. Her 30 minute cardio video was not grueling but it made you work your tail off and sweat a lot. I am ok with that. Just glad to have it behind me and ready to get workout 4 done as well. Today's workout goes back to the first workout that killed my legs. But they are a bit better today and i am just ready to get that workout behind me and move on.

I definitely needed this today...

Jillian Day 2 . . . OUCH!

Well, another video has been completed! I promise not to update every video every day but i was just giving you some insight into what the Phase 1 videos consist of. Yesterday afternoon i did workout 2. It was actually ok. Yes, it is hard but manageable and i made it all the way through. You SWEAT your tush off from about 6 min in to the video until the very end. I was not really sore this morning from workout 2; however, i am terribly sore this morning from workout 1. My legs are still about to fall off. Workout 2 did do a little with legs and i was ok doing it but i was hoping that it would work all of the soreness out from the previous workout. I have NO CLUE what today's workout will entail and i don't evan want to get a glimpse because i am scared it may say something about legs. HA! Whatever it is, it will be good. JJ also does not have baseball games today (YAHOO) so i will probably try to get some cardio in as well and maybe that will help my legs. There is no way that i can run, but i can try to walk it out.
And good news today...i lost another lb this am when i weighed! That would be a total of 12 llbs (in the past few weeks) but 6 of those lbs have been lost since Saturday. I am definitely not complaining. Just crossing my fingers that it continues. I feel so much better since getting over that bad juju that i had and i am back to eating well and exercising and taking care of myself better.

Here was what Workout 2 was...

WORKOUT 2 (WEIGHTS, RESISTANCE CABLE)

Continue building your foundation with classic “back of the body” moves that work your back, biceps, glutes, hamstrings and core using your weights, a resistance cable and your own body weight. Like Workout 1, strength, balance and stability are the goal as you burn mega calories.

Gettin Back in the Groove

PHASE 1

Blast calories. Blast fat. Blast metabolism into the stratosphere!

So...i started my Jillian Michaels Body Revolution videos yesterday afternoon and i was very proud of myself for completing the entire video. There was one exercise at the end of the video that i stopped 3 reps early because i was about to DIE but other than that, it went well. I did see how the stability of my left leg is much stronger than the stability of my right leg when doing these 2 different exercises. I know that will improve over the course of these workouts. When i woke up this am, i hopped out of bed and was not really sore at all; but as the day has gone on, my legs are much more sore and i feel it in my chest as well. The positive thing about the soreness is that i know i have accomplished something that is doing wonders to my body. I hope that i can make it through all of today's workout. It is different than yesterday so i hoping that i will not be too sore. I will just work my way through the soreness. Another positive for today is that i lost another lb when i weighed this am. As long as the scale is moving, i am a happy girl! I know there are days when this will not happen and those days i despise but i will try to look past it for the moment and know that it will move again soon. I went through this about a month ago and it gets you discouraged but i just had to sit back and look at the big picture and loved the way that was i feeling...that was the only motivation that i had to get through the disappointment. But i am trying to approach it a little different this time. Here was workout 1...

WORKOUT 1 (WEIGHTS)

Start off strong with basic moves that target “front of the body” muscles like chest, shoulders, arms, quads and core! This workout is about building balance and core strength in order to burn calories and prep your body for the upcoming workouts. Your body and light weights provide the resistance. Low impact cardio bursts make this a non-stop fat burner.

HAPPY MONDAY

I think that is a very first for adding Happy and Monday together. But my morning started out really good and that has made for a good rest of a Monday so far. I am one of those crazy people that weigh themselves daily when i am trying to do good.

So, the first thing i did this am was weigh because i always do and because i knew that i would be starting my Jillian workouts today as well and definitely wanted a baseline. I knew that i had lost 6lbs being sick for the past month but i was so HAPPY to see that i lost another 4lbs just over the weekend!! YAY me. That was enough motivation for me to have a great day regardless of the dreary weather and the fact that it was Monday. I didn't eat perfectly healthy over the weekend but for whatever reason, i am happy with the weight loss. On Friday, i started the 3 new vitamins that i had ordered so maybe the Relora or Milk Thistle is going to work with me on my weight loss journey. And if so, bring it on! I was just taking those to help with stress and flushing toxins out of my body but whatever added benefit they may bring are greatly appreciated by me. 

I have LOTS to do this afternoon and evening so i may have to give my Jillian workout update tomorrow. Wish me luck!

At Last . . .

Well, it is Sunday (officially 1 month) since i have been sick and i feel SO much better. I did run a little fever last night but that was the first time since Friday night and i could not be happier. So far, no fever today and that makes me smile. I can handle once at night as long as i feel good during the day. I was able to get up and go to the grocery store and get lots of healthy food and get it all put away. I am back to my Sunday "cooking extravaganza" in am attempt to get things ready for the week. We have eaten out almost every night the past two weeks and i have absolutely not liked it. It gets old, things stop tasting good and it is just not as healthy. But things are starting to look up. The boys still feel kinda crappy but they are both on antibiotics and hopefully will be good in the next day or two. I was not going to let them go through what i have been through the past month...that is just not fair!
I am also thinking about starting my Jillian workouts today instead of tomorrow but i am still contemplating that one. Surely a day early will be ok but i want to be ready. I CANNOT go backwards. I have decided to wait until a little later to do it if i decide i feel like it. But if not, it is ON like Donkey Kong tomorrow. I am so ready to get back to feeling like a million $$. I also got all of my Obagi products in the mail yesterday and i got my skin care regimen started. I cannot wait to see what this does for my skin. It already feels better but i am excited to see the difference that it makes on my somewhat aging skin. I am a huge skin care junkie but most things irritate my sensitive skin. But the system i chose is supposed to be great for sensitive skin as well. Between my new vitamins and my skin care products, i should definitely be back in my 20s in a month or so right??!! Along with the new body that i will have in about 90+ days. We shall see. All i can say is...at last...i feel better!!!!

~ Another 2 Bite the Dust ~

Well...i am happy to FINALLY report that i am feeling better. Not quite 100% but i am getting there. I have a feeling that tomorrow will be a good day for sure. However, i am sad to say that both of my kids are now sick. Running fever > 101.5 and lots of pooping for Chayton. The culprit...strep throat or a fever virus. We are waiting on Chayton's culture to come back from the doctor tomorrow but she was pretty sure that's what it was. And now that Jackson is running fever and feeling crappy also, it has to be that one of the two. REALLY??!! I/We cannot catch a break over here! My entire house has been clorox'd, cleaned, lysol'd, etc and yet these two precious boys still managed to catch something else. The bad part (for me) is that whether they have strep or a fever virus, i can still get it. That is the part that is just about to drive me nuts. The antibiotics that i am currently on to kill what i have going on DOES NOT cover strep. And there is not any treatment for a virus but for it to run its course! But i am just going to do a whole lot of praying for myself as well as my babies. Tomorrow is going to be better...i just feel it!!

The Couch, The Today Show, Dr Oz . . . OH MY!

That is exactly what i have done today! I really, for once, listened to what the doctor told me and was compliant with what he said. WOW...I couldn't even manage to do that with both pregnancies with pregnancy-induced hypertension. But I am sure it was because it's hard to be on bed rest when you feel fine. The situation I am in this time, I do not feel fine. So that is the main reason I did what I was supposed to. I have said numerous times that I have lots to do; and I do!! In order to complete all that i need to do, i have to get well. So, I watched my shows, layed on the couch, put my whitening trays in while watching tv, painted my fingernails and toenails, and read some of my book that I got in January. Bad thing was that after I read a chapter, it said do not move on to the next until you de-clutter the whole house. Well, that wasn't happening today. So I had to stop at that chapter. It's ok though because that isn't a high priority right now. I want to work out...that is a high priority!! So maybe come Sunday, I can try. If not, Monday sounds like a plan. I can only hope. Now, we are finishing up on cheering on the TIGERS!!

Post-Infective Bronchitis

Yes, that is the new diagnosis! I feel a lot better with things after today's visit with Dr O'Dea. He flat out told me that what he is putting me on will make me better by this time next week. I was hoping by Monday and that is still my hope. But at least there is a light at the end of this tunnel. I was kinda confused about the whole walking pneumonia diagnosis because my chest  x-ray looked ok. But until someone tells you differently, you just have to go with it. One thing that i have totally stressed over is the fact that Dr O'Dea did not want me going to work today or tomorrow. REALLY??!! He basically told me that if i did not stay home and rest the end of this week and weekend, that i will end up in the hospital. And let me just tell you...that will not happen for sure. I suppose i will listen because he would have to beat me and drag me by my hair, legs, arms, something to ever get me admitted to the hospital. After that being said, i did talk him into letting me work this afternoon to get some things done and agreed to stay off tomorrow. Here is what my medication has gone from...
Z-pack ----------->Avelox----------->Doxycycline
Tussionex---------->Tussicaps
Inhaler------------->Shot of steroid and Medrol dose pack

If that is not enough medications, i dont know what is!! As long as it works, i dont care how much i have to take. Today, i also started back on a multivitamin and on Milk Thistle, which flushes all of the toxins out of your body. Obviously, that is what i need. Maybe this is the last time you have to hear about me being sick.

PRAYERS

Just a quick note to say... please say a prayer for me. I am going back to the doctor in the morning. I really am hoping that he tells me that it just takes this long to get over what I have. Or that I have something different (that is no big deal) and need different antibiotics. I really have no clue what is really going on or what they are going to do/give me. I just know that I have lots to do and have to be better quickly! Preferably by the weekend. Ha! Wishful thinking I am sure, but maybe.

DAY 23 . . .

GERMS!!

Well, today is Day 23 that i have been sick. That is a long time don't ya think?! I sure think so and i am just about over being sick! I said that i was going to stop complaining about it, but maybe just this one last time will get the point across to by body and my immune system that i really want to be normal again. I do feel a little better than i have been feeling but i am still running a temp around 100.5 (better than 102) and i cannot shake it. And i am still totally exhausted and fatigued. I have lots of things that i need to get done for myself, at the house and for the kids. With the way i have been feeling, i have accomplished absolutely nothing! However, i did order myself about $75 worth of vitamins the other day that i hope will protect me from all of this crud in the future. I got a multivitamin, Relora (which helps deal with stress and anxiety), and also Milk Thistle (which flushes all of the toxins out of your body). The latter of the 2 listed i learned about on Dr Oz and i believe anything that he says so i decided to try them out. I cannot wait to get them. I also went and got Jackson some more vitamins also that had immunity support as well. They did not have "My 1st Flintstone Vitamins" for Chayton at Walgreens yesterday, but i will find him some as well. And JJ...he never gets sick and told me that he didn't want any.

~ SPRING is in the AIR ~

This afternoon after Jackson's game, JJ got to work on the backyard and a little of the front yard. Boy, what a difference it made. He cut the crepe myrtles and also pulled weeds from the back flower bed that always looks like crazy through the winter months. Since i have been sick and have ZERO energy, i was exempt from this project thank goodness. I would been out of breath after 5 minutes of working with this pneumonia junk. He recruited Jackson about half way through but Jackson helped him out tremendously! He was so sweet to help his daddy. And he did a great job.

Pulling weeds

He was supervising 

And posing for pics!

Getting the job done

The AFTER pile!

* Blues City Blowout *

This weekend Jackson's team played in their 1st tournament of the season at MRSC. They played up an age group and played fair. There were only a handful of practices in which all of the players were there because basketball season was wrapping up as well. So, they didn't do just terrible but they had the potential to win the 1st two games for sure and lost the 1st and tied the 2nd! We had 2 games on Saturday  and 1 game on Sunday. We ended up losing our game on Sunday. We played much better the 2nd half. The weather was ok...Saturday am at 8:00 was much nicer than the game at 12:45 on Saturday and 9:20 Sunday am. When it is cool/cold outside, at MRSC- it is about 10-15 degrees cooler. When it is windy outside, the wind blows much harder there too. It is crazy but it is what it is. 

 Jackson #8

 Chayton playing with the soccer ball

 Bartlett vs Cougars

 Jackson, Zach, Sidney and Chris

 Jackson and Carter

Chayton watching his brother

R.I.P. Miller Man!

 On Wednesday, our family lost our 1st dog as a family pet...Miller. He was an AKC registered lab and he was white. The name he was registered by was "Williams Miller Lite." Crazy, i know. He was such a good dog and was always great with kids. He never met a stranger and we never had to worry that he may growl or bite at someone. I always felt like we were protected while we were home and while we were gone because Miller could definitely make someone think he was mean if he didn't know who was coming into the backyard. He was definitely JJ's favorite! They used to go on walks every night and that was "their" time i guess. Jackson absolutely adored Miller as well. He would play with him in the backyard and would also let him out in the front when he was out there playing. And Chayton also loved him. He called him "Big Hoss" or "Mil Mil." He was not afraid when Miller walked up to him for pets, although Chayton was much smaller than him. He was the BEST dog that we could have asked for and he was my favorite dog also. We had that sweet dog for 11 years and we sure will miss him!! We LOVE you Miller man!!

(we have more pics of Miller with Jackson also but they weren't on this computer...tear!)