The Souvenir that Nobody Wants to Bring Home

Well, we’re back from our visit to The Galilean Children’s Home. Today, I resume my regular fitness and nutrition routine. I couldn’t be happier to do so because my weigh-in today wasn’t good at all!! I was actually rather surprised considering that last week, I was rather sick. I’ll blog about the trip later, but for the majority of the week, I wasn’t feeling well. I didn’t have much of an appetite because my stomach hurt and from Tuesday-Thursday this princess had to do a lot of sitting on the porcelain throne. Considering all that, you would think that I would have lost 5-10 pounds (that’s how I felt anyways). After all, I didn’t eat much for a good portion of the week and it didn’t seem as though anything stayed in my system long anyways. Yet, I STILL have a nasty surprise on the scale today!

Even though I obviously couldn’t work out last week due to being so sick, I didn’t think that would affect me so terribly considering that I wasn’t eating that much (well, until I started feeling better by the weekend). So, I guess the weekend coupled with this “time of month” is a rather “heavy” disadvantage. Well, they always say that you come home with more than you left with when you go on vacation. Though, I had hoped that I wouldn’t bring extra pounds home with me this time; but I guess that is always a souvenir that most can’t avoid bringing back.

So, how bad is it? Well, it’s bad: 201 pounds bad! Yeah, I know….awful!! I was in the mid 190’s when I left, so even though it’s only a few pounds up, that still puts me back in the 200’s (though this is VERY temporary - I can promise you that!!). This is typical of vacation anyways. Usually, the next week, I lose whatever it was that was gained (and maybe a little more). So, I look forward to a big loss next week as my body gets shocked back into submission.

Nevertheless, it’s still very disheartening to always feel like so much hard work (that takes weeks and months to show success) can be undone in only a matter of days. It REALLY upsets me. Do you ever get so mad that you just wish you could cut your fat off?! Gosh, if it were only that easy to take a pair of scissors and trim your own chicken legs the way you do the real stuff that you buy at the store!!

I’m pretty frustrated and moody. All I want to do is cry. I am so weary of battling and trying so hard; and am BEYOND tired of being the “fat girl”. It’s one of those days where I just want to give in and give up. Of course, I know better than that, but I wrestle with this feeling at least once a month (obviously!).

I know all of you are super supportive of me, and I can about imagine all the nice and encouraging comments you will leave. However, sometimes a girl just doesn’t want to hear it (and I think you ladies understand). I don’t think I want to hear “don’t worry, you’re still doing great…you’ll get there…muscle weighs more than fat…..this stuff happens…..etc.” None of it really helps at the moment, so please spare me….I would appreciate it. Actually, I don’t know why I even continue posting updates like this because I don’t really want to all that much. Though, I know it’s good accountability, so I suppose that’s why I keep it up.

Anyways, that’s all I’ve got at the moment. I will blog about my trip as soon as I can. Please, keep me in your prayers if possible. God bless you all!

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle All The Day!

Well, today is the day! We're going to The Galilean Children's Home! Please, keep us in your prayers as we travel and pray that our hearts will be ministered to just as we hope to minister to them (I get to take care of babies all week!! HOORAY!!). Also, pray that The Galilean Children's Home will get the funds they need. The economy has its obvious effect on donations. They are also in desperate need of volunteers! If you would, please pray about how you could possibly meet those needs!! Please, check out their link!! 

I'm sure I will have much to say when we get back!! Until then, I look forward to possibly meeting my favorite "Kentucky person" (LOL) Shane. ;) That, and I am eager to see Maggie and bring her back home with us. She has been volunteering at the Children's Home for a few months. She's the one that's in the title of this blog because "Maggie Doodle" is one of her nicknames. I looked up the lyrics for "Polly Wolly Doodle" and reworked them to fit my Maggie Waggie Doodle lol! I was going to video myself singing it (and post if for fun) but I didn't have time. Maybe I'll post one later when I get back! :) If you know Maggie, you'll totally understand what I'm singin' about lol! In fact, if you forget what her laugh is like, watch this video and refresh your memory lol. 

Anyways, pray for us.....and enjoy these lyrics in the meantime lol! I've also included a couple videos of my favorite versions of "Polly Wolly Doodle"; one by Shirley Temple and the other by The Chipmunks. God bless you all!! 

Oh, I'm goin' down South for to see my pal 

Singin’ Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!

My pal, she is a spunky gal 

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!! 

Fare thee well, fare thee well, fare thee well I'm on my way! 

For I've packed my bags so I can see my Mags 

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!!!  

Oh, my pal, she is a maiden fair

Singin’ Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!

Together we are a goofy pair

Singin’ Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!

Fare thee well, fare thee well, fare thee well I'm on my way! 

For I've packed my bags so I can see my Mags 

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!!!  

Oh, I love my Mag and I have for years

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!! 

She cracks me up ‘til I cry tears

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!! 

Fare thee well, fare thee well, fare thee well I'm on my way! 

For I've packed my bags so I can see my Mags 

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!

Oh, I’m travelin’ to the Galilean Home

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!! 

Now my Mags won’t have to be alone

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!! 

Fare thee well, fare thee well, fare thee well I'm on my way! 

For I've packed my bags so I can see my Mags 

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!

I will make her laugh any time I choose 

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!

Because I love to hear my oinking goose

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!  

We’ll have so much fun, just wait and see

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!

Then she will come back home with me

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!

Fare thee well, fare thee well, fare thee well I'm on my way! 

For I'm ready now, to see my pal 

Singin' Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!

Singin’ Maggie Waggie Doodle 

Singin’ Maggie Waggie Doodle

Singin’ Maggie Waggie Doodle all the day!!

*Click here to read Precious in His sight: The Galilean Home children by founder Jerry Tucker. Also check out Faith, hope, and room for one more: One family's spiritual journey of shepherding abused and handicapped children from around the world*

The Final "Fit Life" Results

Alright, people! I said I would let you all know when I had the final Fit Life results and here they are! The overall biggest loser was one of my teammates, Gina!! She lost 33.5 pounds and 13.5% of her body weight!! Way to go Gina!! That’s awesome! So glad that someone on our team was the “biggest loser”! 

Speaking of teams, the overall winning team was the black team. I don’t know about anyone else, but that took me by surprise! I had thought that our team (blue) and the yellow team were neck and neck for first (so I have no idea where the black team came from) but congratulations! I’m not sure what place our team got, but I’m proud of our team regardless. 

This week has felt a little more relaxing now that I don’t have to think about a weigh-in (well, other than my own personal weigh-ins). Do you know what I did (well, didn’t do) on Monday? I DID NOT WORKOUT! Not only did I not feel like it (had a headache) but I just wanted to finally take a rest day. Oddly enough, however, I felt really strange doing that. I felt very bothered; like I was being lazy. I also had a tinge of fear that taking the day off was going to bring my momentum to a screeching halt and turn on my rebellious streak of “I’m just going to do whatever for a while.” Dangerous!! However, I DID workout Tuesday and Wednesday, and am going to for the rest of this week. Sunday will be my next rest day, because I will be going to the Galilean Home that day and will be on the road. I might try to workout while I’m there, but it’s obviously not going to be my main priority. All I’m hoping for is that “vacation mode” won’t undo all my progress thus far! It takes SO LONG to lose the weight, but gaining it back happens about as soon as you can blink your eyes (well, for me it does!). 

Well, that’s all I got for ya! The only other thing I have to say is a totally off topic mention of the recent article I wrote for Examiner.com about Saint Patrick’s day. Please feel free to read and subscribe! I hope you enjoy it! Oh, and a big “thank you” to Cy and Lisa for inviting us to their big bash! ;) I have never eaten so much green food in my life lol! Ya’ll are my kind of people! So much fun!! 

God bless you all, and thank you for all your support!! 

My "Fit Life" Finale

Tonight was the last Fit Life weigh-in; and I’m relieved, to say the least! This challenge/competition has been great, but I’m glad that it’s over!! Even though it was a great jump start, motivation, and means of some accountability, it sometimes felt like a lot of pressure. After all, no one likes to gain a pound and bring down their team or feel like they are ever a disappointment for not losing as much as others. It’s been a good experience, but I would probably think twice before doing something like that again.

I don’t know when we will know which team (and individual) is the winner, but all I know is that I am SUPER PROUD of my team! Everyone pretty much did their part and that’s why we have always been in 1st or 2nd place from week to week. I can’t wait to see how we finish out! Way to go team; and thank you, Blake, for your help as well!! I hope we “brought it” and brought it well!! We strived to be a “jacker-free” team! LOL! I hope we made you proud!

I’ll post the final results when I know, but for now I will just post my own results. If we’re going by my own scale, it’s as follows:

Starting weight: 207
Ending weight: 193.2
Pounds lost: 13.8
Weight-loss percentage: 6.66% (Ew! I wish I could have 7.77% or something!)

Fit Life weigh-ins at the gym:

Starting weight: 209.5
Ending weight: 193
Pounds lost: 16.5
Weight-loss percentage: 7.88%

There’s only one catch. The first weigh-in that we had was botched because we all weighed in on different scales and some of them weren’t functioning correctly. So, the second weigh-in that we had is what we’re counting as the starting point. It’s a REAL BUMMER for most of us who lost the most between that first and second weigh-in (yeah, like me!). So, that means that my numbers are:

Starting weight: 204
Ending weight: 193
Pounds lost: 11
Weight-loss percentage: 5.39%

Regardless, I do feel that I did a good job. I gave it my all and it got me moving steadily in the right direction after being stalled in my progress for quite some time. I had hoped that I would lose 10-15 pounds during this challenge and I am proud to say that I did! Thank you, Jesus! All glory to God!!

Thirteen pounds is a great start this year, but I still got forty-three pounds left to lose! Even though it often seems like this is going to take forever (or that I’ll never make it) I know I will - eventually. I just hope that it will finally be this year! January 2007 was when I started getting really serious about losing weight, and yet, here I am in 2010 still trying to “get there”. I should have already gotten there by now! Though, in these three years, I think I have learned a lot and that I’m better equipped and able to finally reach that goal of 150 that always seems so far away! A lot of “trial and error” goes a long way! Sometimes, it takes time to learn what does and doesn’t work for you. Nothing is “one-size-fits-all”. You really do have to find the balance that works for your body, and it takes accomplishments (as well as failures) to find it. Even then, you’re still always changing and reworking; hoping and praying that God will help you to get it figured out! Yeah, if it weren’t for Jesus, I wouldn’t have any success at all!!

For now, at least, I’m just happy that I’m almost to the 180’s (again!). For some reason, I have never been able to get beyond that. The closest I got was in the fall of 2007 when I got to 178, but that didn’t last long. Now you all probably know that being an “80’s child”, I really do love and appreciate the 80’s so much! However, THESE 80’s aren’t the kind I want to cling to and remember fondly lol. Even though I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again…I’m glad to be out of the 200’s and to soon be out of the 190’s (and to not go back again, and again,…). I really want to “get out and stay out” this time.

One last thing that I would like to share (and give God some praise for) is for the fact that I went to an endocrinologist and got a bunch of tests run. They FINALLY found out what my big problem is (and surprisingly, it wasn’t wheat/gluten as I had suspected - and THANK GOD FOR THAT!). You know what it is? It’s a vitamin D deficiency!! Oh my gosh, now that I know, it seems so obvious! I mean, seriously, in the winters I get more moody than normal (seasonal affective disorder). I knew that it’s because of decreased sunlight and I knew that vitamin D was the element in sunlight that we all need. Yet, it STILL didn’t dawn on me to take a vitamin D pill (or maybe I just didn’t think I needed to since I take a multi-vitamin). So, the doctor put me on a high dosage of vitamin D to take for a month, and then I will take an OTC vitamin after that. Hopefully, I will see some real improvement in my energy level, and my pain and fatigue will decrease. I feel relieved, as well as hopeful, that I will finally start feeling better very soon!! Hallelujah!!

Well, that’s my update for this week! Thank you, everyone, for reading and supporting me!! I will continue to keep you posted on my ongoing progress, because this journey sure isn’t over yet!! I’m going to keep the momentum going!! God bless you all!

The Stress Factor

A few days ago, I posted my frustration about the “tough days.” Though, however tough things may be, I remain optimistic. Yet, it’s REALLY hard to remember to do so when you weigh-in and see that you aren’t where you thought you’d be. The scale showed a loss of like 1 and a half when I weighed in at the gym, but it’s only because I was so upset (and nervous about not having a loss at all) that I didn’t eat anything before I went. Didn’t have an appetite much at all.

Ok, so I KNOW that as a woman, that “time of month” factors in. But still, I worked SO HARD last week! I worked out every day (as always) and even bumped up my calorie burn from 3,000 calories a week to 3,500+. I feel that I have been doing well nutritionally too, so there’s no reason (in my mind) for not having a fantastic loss. It’s beyond frustrating to me, and it just seems WRONG! You know what I mean?

The “muscle weighs more than fat” and “you probably lost inches” or even the “you’ll have a good number next week” stuff doesn’t mean much in the moment when all you can think of is how you want to explode! You are just beyond shocked (and angry) that all the hard work, sweat, and tears aren’t seeming to amount to anything. As I’ve told a few people, it’s a horrible feeling to feel as though you gave it your all only to earn a tenth of an inch of progress on a yard stick. Sure, progress can be slow (but “look how far I’ve come”). Yeah, yeah, yeah. Once I “get over it”, all of that stuff will sound fine. But, until then, things are not “fine.”

Maybe the only other factor not yet fully considered is the “stress” factor. How can you tell if you are “stressed” and that it’s factoring into the weight-loss hindrance? You hear the trainers talk about it on “The Biggest Loser”, but exactly how do you define stress? I guess I haven’t thought of myself as being stressed, but maybe I am. So, if that’s the case, how does one truly de-stress? The answer: more quiet, more prayer, more Jesus.

I want to finish strong for the last weigh-in on Monday. Whatever happens, I will still be proud of my progress and of what I’ve done. No matter what the scale says, I have no reason to be ashamed. I am doing well, and no one and nothing can tell me differently. I know you all are proud of me, I’m proud of me, and God is proud of me. I will continue doing whatever I can and I will “get there” (eventually). Maybe things will continue to be slow (and very frustrating) but it WILL NOT MAKE ME GIVE UP!! I’ll keep remembering something Grandma once said, “Once she’s got something in her head, even the devil can’t change her mind!” True that! ;) He can throw whatever he’s got at me, and maybe it will trip me up, but I always get back up! He can do a lot of things; but he can NEVER make me QUIT! Sometimes, it really does payoff to be a strong-willed child (note to self: remember this every time you have a rough moment with your mini-me daughter!). ;)

All glory to God!! Grace and peace to you all! Thanks for all your support and prayers!

Going "Home" For Vacation

Guess what?! Spring is almost here! Yay! Not only that, but SPRING BREAK TOO!! So, do you have plans for Spring Break? If not, maybe you will now!!

On Sunday, March 21st, my family and I will be going to The Galilean Children’s Home in Liberty, Kentucky. You might remember me talking about it before (I blogged about my first trip last June.Click here to read about it!). Ever since I went the first time, I have been aching to go back!

Maybe most people don’t think of mission trips as a “vacation” (or maybe they think of it as a “working vacation”). However, if you read some of the definitions of the word, you’ll find that it means many things. It’s a “respite”; a break from your every day life. It’s a period of time in which normal every-day activities are “suspended”. You are away from home and visiting someplace else. It doesn’t necessarily have to be an exotic beach get-away with umbrella drinks in order to be satisfying and relaxing.

I am truly looking forward to my “respite” from my typical activities! Though, in some ways, it will be much of the same. I will be taking care of kids (babies, to be more precise! Yay!). Ordinarily, I probably wouldn’t consider it much of a break from my typical life, but as I’ve said before, there’s nothing typical about The Galilean Children’s Home. When you’re there, you never feel like you are “working” in any sense of the word. You are serving; there’s a difference. And, while you’re serving, you are enjoying every minute of it because the fellowship and atmosphere is so sweet! There are few (if any) distractions, and it’s peaceful there. There is so much Christian unity and love there, and that’s what I love most about that place! More often than not, it feels like you are “home” in a sense that you have always known, yet, never known. I imagine that that’s how we will feel when we get to heaven; that we have always lived and belonged there, even though we hadn’t been there until that moment. Your heart just knows what “home” really is, and when you’re there, nothing else matters. Furthermore, your heart never forgets it and it longs to be there when you are absent from it. It’s why I have longed to go back “home” ever since I left!

If you think I’m exaggerating, come see for yourself!! If you are interested in going, let me know!! L.A. Brown, who is coordinating this trip, will be finalizing details with me in soon. The basic plan, right now, is that we will be leaving on Sunday (the 21st) after the second service at Life Church (about 12:00 p.m.). We will return the following Sunday (the 28th) in the afternoon or early evening.

Trust me, people, you will always remember the time you spent your “Spring Break” at The Galilean Children’s Home! It will be one “vacation” you will never forget!! Whether you are loving and caring for babies and kids, hanging out and/or caring for the disabled kids/adults, or building/fixing things that need attention on the grounds, you will feel AMAZING knowing that you are doing Kingdom work! Not only will you be ministering to them, but they will most certainly minister to you in ways that you’ll never see coming!! I can’t even begin to describe to you how much I feel I have grown in faith and character since going there (and I can’t wait to recharge my batteries!). God moves in amazing ways! I can’t wait to see what He does this time (and to have my family with me is all the sweeter!!).

Please give this some prayerful consideration!! I hope you can join us!! Oh, and my friend Maggie (who is currently down there) will be riding home with us!! Yay!! I can’t wait to see her (and to have another road trip with her lol!). I am SUPER EXCITED about all the people that I’ll get to see and all the many more memories that we’re sure to make!! I hope to share many of those memories with YOU, so let me know!! God bless you all!!

The Tough Days

“Ugh, I don’t want to workout!” We all have days like that (well, I definitely do!). Actually, it can be more often than not. Usually, however, I exercise anyways. The days that are the hardest are the days like today; when you’re feeling moody, hormonal, blah, and just about every emotion in-between. You can’t really explain why you feel the way you do (if you‘re a woman, you understand!) and you really feel like just saying “ah, forget it!” for the day.

Sometimes you do “forget it”. Other times, you push through anyways. Even then, it can be really hard because everyone on the workout video is smiling. “What are YOU smiling about?” you want to ask. “Oh, that’s right. It’s EFFORTLESS for you and you have a perfect body! That’s why!” Then, whomever is leading the video, says something really lame like “are you having fun?” or “you there at home, you‘re doing great!“ or the real kicker, “you’re gonna look so good!“. It’s at that moment, for some MYSTERIOUS reason, that you want to scream “shut up!” and put your foot through the TV.

These are the tough days; the days where you can’t tell if what’s pouring down your face is sweat or tears (or both!). All the fear of “what if I never get to goal?” starts to turn into doubts of “that’s right, I never will…I should just give up!” as well as anger, “I HATE being fat! I’m so tired of it! Why does it have to be so hard?!” It makes you want to explode and then binge on something to finalize your defeat.

But then, you get through it. Why? Because you know the difference between truth and lies. You remember that you can do all things through Christ (Philippians 4:13) and that He will give you the strength to overcome. You remember that your emotions are fleeting and that no matter if you’re feeling bad physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually, you will make it! And, as you’re lying there on the floor after doing some killer ab work, you actually manage to smile with relief and feel grateful that it’s over (and hope that it all pays off). You resolve to keep clinging the victory. Satan may assault you, but he’ll never knock you out because Christ is the champion and has already won for you! ;)

Sometimes venting (and even laughing) about struggles like this can do wonders! It’s why I wanted to post this because I know that it’s something that a lot of us can relate to! So, if you are reading this (and are nodding your head and smiling/laughing) remember to keep persevering! Yeah, I’m not going to tell you to “hang in there” because I know how much that cliché annoys me and how I about want to “hang” up the towel even more when I hear that ridiculous phrase! I guess maybe the better phrase is the one that Red Green says (and it always kind of makes me smile): “Remember, I’m pullin’ for ya! We’re all in this together!” It also makes me want to break out into the “High School Musical” song……. ;) LOL! Oh my gosh, now that’s going to be stuck in my head for a while! So catchy!!

Ok, well, here’s to getting through the tough days! Here’s to prayer which carries us and gives us the strength to endure and refuels us when we fall (becomes sometimes, we just wanna pass out!). Knocked down, but not defeated! We’ll always rise back up! We got the King of Kings as our coach; always in our corner! God bless you all!

Fit Life = Way of Life

After a disappointing weigh-in last week, I was hoping for a better one this week. Things were looking pretty good exercise-wise. I met (and exceeded) my goal for calories burned. I worked out every day in some way, and the next phase of Power 90 was a little tougher (and I burned a lot more). I still had some nutrition issues (namely Friday when I was baking sweets for a bake sale - yeah, brownie batter/cookie dough, etc. just spells “doom” for me!). However, I actually came out on top this week!! Two pounds down!! Hallelujah! ;)

This means that my weight-loss percentage is over 5% now! I’ve lost 11.4 pounds! I had hoped to lose 10-20 during this challenge (with 15 being kind of being the number I hope to hit). I have two more weeks left! If I can lose four pounds total over the next two weigh-ins, I will make it (the final weigh-in is in two weeks, on the 15th).

As of right now, I’m not the “biggest loser” overall, and I’m not sure which team is currently in the lead. We seem to toggle between 1st and 2nd place a lot. Regardless, everyone seems to be doing well (those that are still around anyways lol). Blake was right; there were a lot of “jackers”, but most of them are gone now.

Well, I think that’s about it for this week! Pretty short and sweet!! We were missing Monica, again, this week. Though, me and a few other gals got to do some yoga tonight. Never done it in class form, but have done some here and there in Power 90 and Turbo Jam when they throw some yoga stretches in the mix. It’s pretty good stuff (and there was no emphasis on the goofy spiritual stuff - just the exercise). It’s good for stretching, balance, and flexibility. Though, it’s low-impact and not a huge calorie burner. So, being unsatisfied with a 200+ calorie burn, I did some Turbo Jam when I got home. ;) I’ve already got a good start to this week. Counting yesterday, I have 1,000 of my target 3,000 already burned!

Thank you all for reading and supporting me through this!! I’m going to finish strong (and keep going even after “Fit Life” is finished!). “Fit Life” will continue to be a “way of life” for me! I WILL get to goal! Can’t wait! Then, I’ll just have to maintain; and maybe then I can relax a little more and not have to work/push so hard. Won’t that be nice?! Amen!