Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy Birthday to the most wonderful lady in my life! 

She is always there for me, and guides me in the right direction! 

I love you mom! You are the best! Thanks for everything you do! 

Happy Birthday! 

2011...Blessings...

My word for 2011 is blessing(s). I am confident that this year will bring plenty of them into my life. I am sure that other years have been full of blessings, but I wasn't paying attention! This year I am! 

When I returned to school, I discovered that I was without a job. I was really sad, not because I didn't have a job, but because I loved the family that nannied for. I love the kids, the parents, and the dynamic of it all. But sadly my class schedule didn't work with what they needed. 

Therefore, I had to begin to search for a new job. As much as I loved coming home from class at 2 and just hanging out, I knew I needed to be working. (I told my mom in August that I would work this year, so I didn't need allowance). My mom helped supplement my grocery money for a few weeks, because she didn't want me to go without. (thanks mom!)

Last Monday I had a interview with a new family. I went to this interview full of hesitation. Would I like the mom? How would the little girl like me? Would I feel comfortable with them? After the interview I left feeling really good, I had lots of connections with things that the sweet girl does, and of what I did when I was her age, and now! But, I had to wait a week to find out if I got the job. The mom was interviewing 4 other possible girls. No doubt I was nervous, but confident that I did my best! 

Today, I got the phone call! I was nervous when the number showed up, but I took a deep breath and answered it! I found out that I got the job! This was a huge relief. I will be getting paid more, better hours, and a job over the summer! I am sure that this week will be full of new things, like how do I pick her up at school? Will I get death looks from other mom's if I go the wrong way in the pick up line? I will let you know how that all works out! 

Another blessing...

I went home this weekend to help paint and make the house livable for mom again. All of the carpet and tile is now in, and all of the main living areas are freshly pained! We had time for all the rooms but 2, my bathroom (which will have demo of its own soon!) and the middle bedroom! But my room, my moms, the formal living room and hall way (all areas damaged in the flood) are painted. My body is soar, but I am beyond thankful for the "blessing" of friends who came to help paint! There is no way that mom and I could have done all of that alone!  I will post pictures soon! We still have to put the baseboards in and the door frames. But we will be painting the doors in our house white to update them all to the 20th century! 

Going into Monday I am feeling blessed! 

Wordless Wednesday!

The Countdown Begins....

And the countdown has begun for a vacation that I am sure will be full of fun, laughter, tears, and lots of girl time! 

Do you know where were are going yet?

Yep, we are going to the beach! We have all sent in our money for our house on the beach! 

When I say on the beach, I mean we walk out on the deck of our pink beach house right on the the sandy beach! How appropriate is a pink house for a girls vacation! 

It will be a better version of the end of my Florida vacation last year! My mom and I havent been on a vacation other than Ohio, in about 5 years! My mom will be there along with the majority of these lovely ladies...

I am sure I will come home a different woman, as this is my first girls vacation. My mom and aunts have been doing it for 20 sum years! This year is the year many of the cousins are going! 

So, watch out beach bums, the girls are coming to wreck havoc for a week! 

(We wont wreck havoc, but we will have a blast)

A New Year...A New Me

WARNING: LONG BLOG ENTRY! 

By now I have noticed that the majority of people who had the new years resolution to loose weight have given up (sadly). How do I know this, because the amount of people in their matchy, matchy, new shoes work out outfits has gone back to the normal for the gym I go to! But this year I am not giving up! I am working on the new Me! Not just my weight, but me as a person! I will not let people affect me or bring me down anymore! But I am going to focus on eating more organically, healthier and work out regularly! This blog entry is about who I WAS and the NEW me in progress! 

This is when I was about 125 pounds size 4, this was before things in my life began to go crazy. I think back and even at 125 I still though I was "fat".  I was a sophomore in High School. During my sophomore year I went through some major events in my life that really took a tole on me, and I began to not care. I was very emotional, I didn't understand why I was so emotional. But now know that the events in my life played into my emotions. I was treated badly by a few people that I believed to have loved and cared for me. I was also having issues with the High School girl drama, and began to be treated badly by the girls I had thought were my friends. I was not happy on the inside. I told my mom after, that I would put on my mask and go outside, to school and with friends so they didn't see how badly I was hurting. Not even Bryan really knew the extent of my pain, anger and emotion about my life. 

 This was my senior year. I was 135 here, and I was still in a difficult stage, but I promised I would loose the weight once I got to the amazing gym at TCU...

This was me the weekend before I began my Freshman Year of College. I pledged not to gain the Freshman 15, and I didn't until about late October. This is when my parents finally decided after months of being unhappy that they were getting a divorce (which upset me badly). Then 3 days after I found that out, I had emergency surgery. After surgery I was told I couldn't do any type of work out until after Christmas, I couldn't even carry a backpack... I tried to watch what I ate, but I have never been the eat all you want and still be "skinny" girl. I have always had to work for the body, and weight that I was. To put the cherry on top of it all, I had a roommate who hated me, and I was miserable with my living arrangements. I got into a huge depression, and even after the new year I tried to get out asking for advice and even getting Oxygen Magazine sent to me. The magazines just stacked up in the corner of my dorm room, then got placed at my moms house. I remember spending HOURS in bed sleeping and eating whatever whenever. By the end of my Freshman year I gained not the Freshman 15, but the Freshman 30. Yep, I was 170 pounds by the end of my freshman year. 

This was me the week before I had surgery at the state fair with my best friend! I was at 140 here.

This was me only 3 short months later, at 160...an very unhappy 160...(through all these pictures I really can see the weight gain in my face..)

By the time that May rolled around I was at my max of 170. 

Today, I am starting my journey to the new ME at 155. I have the motivation and drive to kick the last 20 pounds to put me at 135. I want to be back to what I was when I graduated HS. I am now happy with who I am on the inside, so its time to work on the outside! I know that I am not one of the "skinny" girls who can eat/drink what they please and not gain a pound! I am different...and I embrace that! So, throughout they year, I may update my status of this journey, post recipes, pictures, and food journals! 

This is Me now (well 3 weeks ago) at 155! I want to drop 15 before I head to Florida for girls Vacation in May! 

Sorry for this blog entry being long but I warned you :) Thanks for your support on this journey! :) 

Wordless Wednesday!

I know that today is sopose to be wordless Wednesday, but I have to say this dinner is all organic, and has me on the track to meeting my goals! :) 

A blessing in disguise?

Lets flash back to Dec. 26, 2010, the day after Christmas! I leave on a airplane and fly to Ohio! While mom comes home to this...

Water coming out the front door of our house...

And yes the garage too...

and walked into this...a flooded house...

I had just gotten off the plane when she got home and discovered this...

Every room had water in it, except our back living room. We had tore this carpet up a month ago in prep of laying new stuff. THANKFULLY we did choose carpet yet!The culprit of the flood you ask?

Would have been this, the water heater! We were gone for 4 days, so we dont know when it decided to bust a leak, but it was still flowing when mom got home!

Thankfully insurance called in a cleanup crew who tore out our flooring everywhere, and set up fans! 

So this weekend I am home and helping mom finish tearing up the flooring to the concrete so we can have new ceramic tile laid and carpet in the bedrooms! Why was this a blessing?

Because we are getting all new flooring in the whole house for nothing. Yes, insurance may go up next year, but it wont equal what we got our floors for! I will keep you updated on the progress! Until then, I am off to sort trough more piles that the water clean up crew made in the garage and back living room! 

Here is a hit of what I did today! 

Yep! We are finally getting rid of this UGLY red tile! But first we have to tear it out so the new stuff can go in! 

Wordless Wednesday.....

I am starting a new thing for Wednesdays. Where normally I wont write words to go with my pictures! I will explain the pictures later in the week :) 

Home again Home again...well back to School...

I am back from Ohio (have been since Sat). I had an absolute blast with my family. I mean I always do but for some reason this year I had more than normal. I spent lots of time with Miss Maddi Rae...and I miss her like crazy! She is the sweetest baby, and took right to me.

I started school today, and man it was a drag! But good news is I only have this semester and the fall semester next left of classes, and next spring I will be student teaching!
I was thinking, and this year I am going to eat more healthy. Not that I didn't eat healthy last year, I mean that this year I want to eat as much organically as possible (mainly fruits, veggies, dairy products, and meat). I've done lots of reading about it, and I feel that this is the best for my health. I really dont want all of those chemicals in my food. Well I am off to finish my planner, then off to bed! Night Ya'll!

An Interesting Night...

Tonight I had a great time with my family, but we had a psychic come out for fun for my aunts 50th birthday! I decided what the heck I will do it and see what she said! Things that she said, while I have a tough time believing them because I fully believe in God controlling my life, and having a set path for me. But some of the things she said put my heart at rest over issues that I have been pulling in my heart! And some of the things she said were things that I am doing and are in my plan and I am not changing any of it and stopping the tug!! It was also fun to hear other things come out of the room with other family members!  We decided that this will be a yearly event! I dont know if I will share some of the things or not on this blog, but I am writing a word document so that next time I go I will see how much it changes!

Happy New Year! 2010

This year we had a PJ New Years! It was a blast, but it was oo 56 degrees on New Years eve here in Ohio. Even this Texas girl was hot in her flannel pjs! We had the windows and doors open! I loved it!

The girls in our PJ's on New Years! 

Maddi Rae and I right before midnight! 

Grammy and Grampy with Maddi and Mommy and daddy! 

Beth, Brittany, and me!

I hope that you all had a fantastic New Years! This year I have great plans, and adjustments to my life! I have come to terms with things that happened in 2010, good and bad. I am ok with everything that happened! I am happy to say that I each event has shaped me and made me stronger and better! This year my goal is to finish loosing the weight, finish my last 2 semesters of classes strong, and make lasting memories! I also am committed to blogging 2x a week all year! I am to busy with school this year to do 365 days of blogging, but maybe in 2012 I will do that! :)