Workout With Me: My Favorites

 

She girds herself with strength,

And strengthens her arms.

~Proverbs 31:17

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?  For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

~1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Happy Saturday, everyone! Today, I thought I would share with you and review my favorite workout videos to get into shape. The first two I currently use, alternating days. The third I've done a couple of times before, and hope to incorporate again soon.

Walk At Home

First, is Leslie Sansone's Walk At Home. I have been doing Leslie's videos for quite a few years now. I really like that I get a good aerobic and muscle workout, and that I've always been able to do at least a mile without a break. Once I start getting into shape, I can do more. 

All of the moves are fairly simple, but very effective. She uses music to set the speed. In this Walk At Home video, each mile averages out to a 12-minute mile. The first half of a mile is the slowest speed, most of the second half is a more brisk pace. Then, the last 2 minutes of each mile is what she calls a "boosted walk," where you "walk like a runner." This includes the option to kick it up to high-impact for those last 2 minutes, or you can keep it low-impact while keeping the pace. 

The workout I have is a five-mile walk (you can choose how many miles you do in a setting). You can purchase this on Amazon, but I don't believe she is currently actively selling this one anymore. However, you can go to her website to see her current DVD's for purchase.

Workins

Next up are the Trim Healthy Mama Workins. I purchased these shortly after they came out a year or two ago. You can buy the kit, which comes with 9 DVD's, a short information booklet, a poster, and the equipment you need to do the Workins. Or you can just purchase the DVD's separately (as well as each individual piece of equipment) if you already have the necessary equipment. In addition, you do need an exercise ball and a toy ball. 

Trim Healthy Mama calls these Workins instead of workouts, because it focuses on strengthening from the inside out. They really focus on the core, and these are also really good if you are healing from diastasis recti as well. There is also a focus on feminine fit, working out our feminine bodies which are different from men's bodies. This is all explained in the booklet and on the introduction DVD.

These Workins are short, fun, and very effective!

30 Day Core

Third, is Lindsay Brin's 30 Day Core. Again, this focuses on your core. Once I am feeling more in shape, I will bring this back into my routine. These videos are a little longer at about 30 minutes each, and they are definitely the most intense of my videos.

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Those are my favorite workouts, especially in the winter. In the warmer months, I will get outside more for my exercise, but will still use these occasionally. I have heard of T-Tapp and would like to look into that, as well. If anyone has used T-Tapp, I would love your input! Also, let me know in the comments if you have used the above three that I mentioned and what you think. Or, if you have a different favorite workout that you do, I would love some new ideas!

Thank you so much for reading today! If you like what you're reading here on my home on the web, go up to the right sidebar and subscribe. Enter your email, then click subscribe. Go into your email to confirm the subscription and you're all set! You will receive a notification in your email whenever a new post goes up. Have a great weekend, everyone!

MamaWit's Weekend Links: THM Edition

 

Happy Saturday, everyone! As you may (or not!) have noticed, I decided to slow down my posting a bit. I wanted the launch of this blog to be aggressive, but being a stay-at-home homeschooling mama, it wasn't very realistic to keep up with a post or more per day. I plan on coming up with a weekly posting schedule for myself.

In the meantime, I wanted to share some links that I have found helpful from fellow bloggers. Today, I'm sharing some links that I hope will be helpful to you in your Trim Healthy Mama journey!

First, if you're just getting started on THM, check out my post with resources that will help you get started.

THM Tips, Helps, and Menu Plans

Breakfast Menu for 15 Days of Trim Healthy Mama by Mrs. Criddle's Kitchen
Healthy THM Freezer Meals by The Well Planned Kitchen
THM Crockpot Cooking Menu Session by Mixing with Michelle
Trim Healthy Mama Testimony by Northern Nester
54 Trim Healthy Mama Snacks (Kid Approved) by Northern Nester
The Ultimate List of Kid-Approved THM Snacks by Grace-Filled Homemaking
Trim Healthy Mama Aldi Menu Plan and Shopping List by Grace-Filled Homemaking
Eating Out with a Trim Healthy Mama by A Home with Purpose
Trim Happy Hubbie from the Coers Family
Tips for THMing His Lunch by Mrs. Criddle's Kitchen
7 Ways to Get Your Family On Board with Trim Healthy Mama by Grace-Filled Homemaking

That's it for today! I have lots more share, but I plan on making Saturday a day to share links to what I'm finding helpful. Enjoy, and have a great weekend!

No Sugar Day 16

Well, my oldest and I are one third of the way through our refined sugar fast, so I thought I would post an update as to how we are doing!

Things are going fairly well.  I'm still flying by the seat of my pants when it comes to meal planning, but for the moment, that seems to be working.  For now.  Over the weekend we stocked up the kitchen with lots of fruits, veggies, and healthy foods to make our meals easy to plan and prepare.  I have been perusing Pinterest to mix things up a bit and keep our meals and snacks from being boring.  I'm making more from scratch, as it's either hard, or just plain too expensive to find even some basic ingredients that are made without refined sugar or a substitute.  We are using a lot of agave and stevia when appropriate.  The other day, I made homemade ketchup and a homemade version of our favorite store-bought dressing.  The dressing was a little tricky, because I also had to make a homemade version of condensed tomato soup, replacing the tomato juice with pureed canned tomatoes, and of course replacing the sugar with agave in the dressing itself.  But let me tell you, this extra bit of work is so worth it!  The homemade versions taste way better than the store-bought, and obviously, they're healthier!

I've replaced my soda consumption by making a lot more use of our Soda Stream.  Hubby has found a combination that I really like.  Carbonated water, mixed with fresh-squeezed lemon and lime juice, and a little liquid stevia.  We also have a few different bottles of liquid stevia that are flavored, that we can use with the Soda Stream.

Another thing that I've mourned the loss of is yogurt and ice cream.  Unless you buy plain yogurt, there is going to be some form of sugar or sugar substitute in there.  And ice cream?  Well, that's obvious.  :-)  I've satisfied my longing for both of those with one simple dessert.  Greek yogurt, fruit on top (my favorite combo is sliced strawberries and bananas), then drizzled with agave or honey.  What's ice cream again?  Oh, yes.  Well, I don't miss it at all.  And then, there's this little number I can whip up if I start get a hankering for chocolate.  :-)

Finding different ways to make our favorite foods without the refined sugar has turned from being a pain, into being a challenge that is often fun!  I've always enjoyed cooking and baking, but this takes cooking-from-scratch to an even deeper level, when you have to get creative or find ways to make even some basic ingredients without the refined sugar.

What is going without refined sugars doing for my oldest and myself?  Well, I've noticed our attitudes are a lot more mellow.  I've noticed we're both thinking a little more before flying off the handle about silly things.  We're getting along a lot better with each other, as well as with the rest of the family.  We've always been a loving and LOUD family, but he, as the oldest, and I tend to butt heads more than anyone else.  It hasn't exactly gone away, but it's...changed.  In a good way!  :-)  Physically, things are changing, too.  I don't notice a massive energy boost or anything.  However, I did get a cold just before the weekend, and it was done with by Tuesday.  That's one of the shortest colds I've had that I can remember!  There are some foods I momentarily wish I could have, but cravings for eating when I'm not hungry have completely gone away.  My tastes are changing already, and in some cases, healthy food that was perhaps tolerable to me before has become downright yummy!   Also skin blemishes and a few other irritations I've had have almost completely disappeared.  I've also noticed that with my son.  For a couple of weeks before we started our fast, he had been getting a pretty bad outbreak of acne, especially on his forehead.  Almost-twelve-year-old hormones at work, I'm sure.  :-)  When I noticed my own acne had gone away, I called him over so that I could get a close look at his face.  Sure enough, his, too, was almost completely cleared up! So, yes, we are definitely reaping some benefits of staying away from sugar! Oh, and the fact that I'm dropping some pounds isn't bad, either.  ;-)

Realistically, I can't say that we will stay completely sugar-free when our fast is up, but there are a few things I definitely want to establish.  I definitely want to stay away from both corn syrup and artificial sweeteners, especially aspartame.  I definitely want to make sure that if we do consume refined sugar, it's a TREAT, and not a regular occurrence.  And, I definitely want to stick with making certain things from scratch, not only because it's cheaper, but it's just plain better-tasting AND healthier than the store-bought version.  This has been a learning experience for sure, and has shown me that, yes, it IS possible to stay away from refined sugar and still enjoy eating!

To God goes ALL the glory!  I know that without Him, and if it weren't for the fact that we are doing it for Him, there is no way we would have been able to get even this far without at least a little cheat.

No Sugar Days 3-5

Perhaps I should have written this post last night...the last couple of days have been a blur.  My brain fog must have been worse than I thought!  ;-)

Friday removed a layer of fatigue.  No headache and no body aches.  I was just tired and spacey.  I was able to make dinner and do laundry, but that seemed to wipe me out.  I tried to take a nap, but I don't think I really fell into a deep sleep, as I had on Days 1 and 2.

I was so happy on Saturday to notice the fatigue was pretty much gone!  However, in it's place, came irritability.  Over the last year, I had really taught myself to get used to, and learn to enjoy instead of being annoyed by, my boys rambunctious and sometimes loud behavior.  Yesterday, however, certain noises really irritated me and almost seemed to cause physical pain via creepy-crawly feelings.  I should mention here, also, that I am also inadvertently going through caffeine withdrawl.  It's not part of the fast, but I'm not one of those people who drinks coffee every day (pop had been the major source of my caffeine), and since Day 1, it has just happened that I haven't made any coffee.  Confession?  I'm pretty sure I was too tired and out of it to get a pot going!

Today, things seem to be evening out.  I'm still slightly irritable, but not nearly as bad as yesterday.  Of course, that could be because when I stepped on the scale this morning, I had quite the surprise.  I am down 4.5 pounds in just four full days of being off of all refined sugars!  That is awesome, and I am truly thanking and praising God this morning for this motivation and inspiration to keep on keeping on.  All the glory goes to Him!

And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

 ~2 Corinthians 12:9

No Sugar Days 1 & 2

Yesterday was the first day of my journey with no refined sugars.  It started out pretty well, as I expected. The first day of something is always exciting, right?  Although, between my "saying good-bye" to some foods on Tuesday, and only 5 hours of sleep on Tuesday night, it was a tired start.  Mentally, though, I stayed with it and was excited to get going.  After lunch and during the kids' quiet time, I was really dragging and decided to take a nap.  I woke up still very tired and with a bad headache.  I could tell it was my MS acting up, as it started in the back of my head and had an "electrical" quality.  I took some Aleve, but the ache only proceeded to get worse.  Brain fog set in, and for some reason I had 5 bouts of hiccups between the time I got up from my nap until the time I went to bed.  There's obviously no science to back this up, but my theory is that my body was trying to manipulate me into eating a spoonful of sugar to get rid of those hiccups.  ;-)  I was really surprised that I was feeling crummy on the very first day.  I figured it would take a few days before my body realized what was going on.  I think it just goes to show how addicted I am.  A Day 1 highlight?  My oldest decided that he was going to join me and give up sugar, too.  So I'm feeling pretty good about the positive impact my own fast is already having on others in my family.

This morning, Day 2, I did not want to get out of bed.  Hubby let me sleep in a little later than usual, but he woke me up before he left for work, because the kids needed to get up half an hour later.  So, I've basically been in zombie mode all morning.  This fatigue competes fiercely with the MS fatigue I get at times.  It's almost lunch time as I type this, so I will be able to get a nap in soon.  ;-)  I've had absolutely no cravings for the food itself so far, although when I am so tired, I do miss the convenience of not having to think something out, checking the ingredients for sugar, finding sugar, and having to come up with something else before I'm finally able to eat.  So planning is ESSENTIAL in this.  At least now, with my oldest joining me, it will be easier to push myself to do it.  He's relying on me to make sure we're BOTH eating what we're supposed to!

My intention in recording this is not for you all to feel sorry for me, but so that I will have a real, honest record of this journey.  It doesn't look very fun now (and trust me when I say, it's not FEELING very fun!), but I am looking ahead to when I will feel fantastic, and I can't wait to record those days as well!  I do appreciate any prayers you can offer, both for me and my son to get through these first days and weeks.  My number one hope in this, even above getting healthier, is that we will learn to just fully lean on and rely on Him, Who provides all things and all comfort, and that He will be glorified.

Menu Plan Monday: Not a Menu, But a Plan

I don't have my menus quite planned out yet for this week.  Lent starts this Wednesday, and I've really been thinking about a fast this year.  Hubby and I have fasted from various things in the past during Lent, things that perhaps have become an idol in our lives, bad habits,  or things we just needed to force ourselves to take a break from.  I think it's been at least a couple of years since I have seriously thought about something to fast from during Lent.  The start of this year has been a struggle trying to finally get myself healthy.  I started in between illnesses running through the family, and a strong start it has not been.

With that in mind, I began to really think about what the number one thing is right now that is causing me to be unhealthy, and I finally came to the conclusion that it is sugar, hands down.  I have studied the various forms of sugar, their impact on insulin, and insulin's impact on overall health.  Even when I'm counting calories, it seems there is still some form of sugar in anything that is even remotely processed.  Not to mention (it's confession time here, people) I am an absolute soda freak.  And let that be regular soda.  I cannot stand the taste of diet (not to mention, caloric difference aside, aspartame is just as bad for your health as sugar).  And the taste of regular soda has tainted me against the taste of healthier sodas that are made with stevia.

Tomorrow will be both my planning day, as well as my own version of Shrove Tuesday.  No, I will NOT be gorging myself, but there are a couple of things I feel the need to say good-bye to.  :-)  I have been looking at a few cookbooks and websites that provide the type of recipes I'm looking for in going sugar free (not going with the artificial substitutes, either).  From this I will be forming my menu plan.  So, this week I will skip blogging my menu plan, and will hopefully have one to post next Monday.

I also hope to blog my journey.  I know it will not be easy.  I don't think I've ever completely refrained from all refined sugar (I will still be eating natural sugar, such as fruit) from any significant period of time.  I have heard the stories of people who have, however, and I know the first week or two will not be very fun.  I do know, however, that as long as I keep my focus on God, and keep my purpose to be always honoring to Him, I know He will give me strength for this journey.  I am also so very blessed to have a great support system in my family.  I almost feel more sorry for them than for myself the next couple of weeks...hopefully, I won't be too much of a pain to put up with.  :/

Becoming a Proverbs 31 Woman Part 6

She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms.

Proverbs 31:17

This verse, I think pretty much speaks for itself.  And I am convicted here, because it's something I need to pay more attention to.

The Proverbs 31 woman is physically strong.  She can hold her own when it comes to physical labor because of her strength.  She can take care of what needs taking care of around her household, and we can bet that she has plenty of energy to get it done, too.  Well, I know for a fact she at least has much more energy than I have as of late.

This really makes me think of one of my husband's occasional frustrations with me.  I try to keep my order of priorities straight: God first, husband second, kids third, and then everything else.  Am I perfect about it?  Absolutely not!  But, a lot of the times, I let myself fall into the "everything else" category.  With many things, that should be the case, but let's be honest, wives and mamas.  In order to take care of all those other things, we do need to be concerned about our own health.  If we are sick, or weak, or have no energy, what are we really going to be able to do for anyone else?  Are we giving our family our absolute best?

The more I look into nutrition, the more I'm convinced that we can fix so many ailments (and I'm not just talking flabby arms and fluffy tummies here) with proper diet and exercise.  I'm not going to delve into nutrition too much in this post, as that could take up way more room than I have, but if you visit my food blog, you will get an idea of the kind of diet I am reaching toward in order to help battle my Multiple Sclerosis.  Different people need different diets, so do some research and find out what's best for you.

Exercise is so important for physical health, and getting and staying strong.  I have slacked off big time from what I was doing not so long ago, and I can tell.  You can really accomplish so much more when you are in shape!  I seriously need to get back on track.

Walking has to be one of the easiest, cheapest, most convenient way to exercise.  When the weather is cooperative, the kids and I are out walking almost daily.  When it's cold and wet outside, or if I just feel like getting a bit more of an intense workout in, I'll pop in a Leslie Sansone walking video.

   

These are great workouts, especially for those who are just getting started with the whole exercise thing, but challenging enough for workout gurus who are just looking to change the routine up a bit.  Seriously, Leslie's workouts are my absolute favorites.

Of course, non-TV workouts are endlessly in abundance as well.  Once you feel yourself getting too comfortable with walking or your go-to workout, start branching out.  Even playing with the kids counts!  Here is a great resource for practical workouts that will really get you strong.  I will put a disclaimer on that last link and say that while Mark's philosophy about evolution doesn't line up with what I believe, his nutrition and exercise ideas on their own line up with what I have researched and found to be healthy.  The nutrition especially is extremely close to the MS Diet, so, despite our different underlying beliefs, I still enjoy and benefit from his blog.  :)

So, ladies, let's make sure we're taking care of our health, and that we are keeping ourselves fit, for the Kingdom and for our families!

A Productive Day

Today turned out to be wonderful!  I pray the momentum keeps going.  I started today by getting my workout in before I even ate breakfast.  Now, I have to put in a bit of a plug here, because I absolutely LOVE Leslie Sansone's walking videos!  I remember getting her "Walk Away the Pounds" videos years ago.  The workouts are simple, yet they really are effective.  And she always includes levels of intensity from the novice to the veteran walker.  Here is the dvd I popped in today:















Don't be intimidated by the 5 miles!  She always includes "mile markers" so that you can do however many miles you want.  If you're a first-time walker, she even encourages you to try just 5 minutes.  Work your way up to that first mile if you have to.  If you keep it up, you'll find yourself motivated to keep doing a little more, and before you know it, you've got a five-mile walk under your belt (and most likely a little less cush!).  I was able to do the whole 5 miles today, and I'll tell you what, it felt pretty good to not only have accomplished that, but also to have it out of the way right away in the morning!

Another major accomplishment today is that I kept my eating under control.  I have not eaten any dairy (which is a given, I won't touch it anymore after I got sick last time!), gluten, or legume products.  Some days, it's a struggle to stay away from all three...I'm not sure why, since it's a lot simpler to cook without them!  Meat/protein, veggies, and fruit for meals is all I really need to have.  I didn't get advanced menus planned, but I started out today knowing what we would be having for all three meals, so I consider that a start!  Here's what we had today:

Breakfast: Fried eggs (cooked with olive oil) on gluten-free English muffins and topped with organic gluten-free ketchup
Lunch:  Cashew butter sandwiches on gluten-free bread and grapes
Dinner:  Mesquite chicken breasts and corn, and coconut milk ice cream for dessert

I also got some errands run and did some homeschool with my oldest son.  I'm starting Kindergarten with my middle son on Monday, and we are both very excited!  This weekend, I will be going through our curriculum and making sure we have everything we need.  :)

We finished our day with a walk around our neighborhood.  I am very proud of my boys as they were very good all day today!  The Lord has truly blessed us immensely, and I am so thankful to Him for this life He has given me!

Getting back in shape!

Even with year-round homeschooling, a lot of the structure I had previously established has fallen to the wayside in these late summer months.  And I am definitely beginning to feel the effects.  So, in the next few days, I will be working on getting back into shape, and I'm not just talking physically.  Three main things I want to focus on getting into shape are myself (both spiritually and physically), my family, and my home.

I had a good thing going with weight-loss, but that has come to a standstill as of late, and I fear that if I don't get active regularly again very soon, things may take a turn in a direction I'm not willing to go again.  I am really feeling the effects of my lack of activity lately, and I know I need to make being active a top priority right now.  Because if I'm not feeling good physically, it will do me no good to attempt the other things I want to do.  So first and foremost, I will be working on stricter menu plans that are healthy for myself and my family.  Coming in an extremely close second, will be making sure I have time carved out every day for getting a workout in, as well as making sure I get the kids out for a daily walk as long as it's nice outside.

The other aspect of getting myself into shape (and the most important one!) is making sure I am in the Word every day.  I finished reading through the bible a couple of weeks ago, and have decided to start a chronological bible reading plan this go around that I found here.  I've been reading every night before I turn in, so that aspect has been going well.  Now, I just want to make sure that I'm reading daily, and then I will hopefully be able to increase the time I spend doing that.  The one thing that I'm really working on is LISTENING, and not just reading.  I hate to admit it, but sometimes I get so caught up in reading a certain amount every day, that I forget to really absorb what God is trying to say to me.  So I am really praying that the Lord will give me a calm and peaceful heart, and a quiet mind, so that I can hear Him.  :)

As for getting the family into shape, I have a wonderful relationship with my husband...but I really want to make sure I'm reinforcing that, and I plan to pick up the Proverbs 31 study again very soon.  I have a pretty good relationship with my kids, too, but I am really working on my patience (or more like, God is working on it!) and having a meek and quiet spirit.  I really need to learn to "stop and smell the roses," so to speak...to just slow down and enjoy the time God has given me with these precious blessings, and teach them to enjoy and serve each other, as well!

As far as the house goes, I'm really split on how high up on the priority list I want to put it.  Right now, because of the de-cluttering and the fact that our yard sale has gotten postponed until a couple of weeks from now, certain areas of the house are a disaster.  The laundry room has become our "holding area" for yard sale things, and it's really decreased the functionality of that room.  This is one of those areas that comes around full circle back to working on me, because I really have a hard time functioning with a lot of clutter around.  So, I think I will pray that God will either help me to let go of that mental block or give me the energy to get it done without taking time away from the other priorities.  ;)

This post was basically me thinking and planning "out loud."  I also am hoping to put together a list of blog topics and blogging schedule soon, so that I have a more regular stream of posts here.  So, stay tuned and join me on my journey to get back into shape!

A few changes

Okay, I'm back in action!  It's been awhile since I've posted here because I've been busy starting a new recipe blog for people following the MS Diet.  You can check that out here.

I've also been struggling to find a cleaning routine at home, but I think I've found a good one.  I just couldn't keep consistent with flylady for some reason, and I was talking to a friend of mine from church, and she recommended this site to me.  I figured I'd better try it out for awhile to see how it works, and I gotta tell you, it works awesome for me!  I printed out the June calendar and follow all the tasks each day.  It's simple enough to not get overwhelming, but gets enough done to be noticeable each day.  Plus, I still have time to do school and anything else that needs to be done for the day.  I love it!  Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Weight Loss-How I'm Doing It

One of the exciting things that has been happening in our family lately is that hubby and I are losing weight. We have been at it since mid-January, and to be honest, this is the longest in a long time that I have stuck with something that works. I don't want to say "diet," because that's NOT what it is at all. Hubby has lost a little over 20 pounds, and I have lost 13.5 pounds so far. We still have quite a ways to go (me more so than my hubby), and we've both been down this road before, so the stage we are in right now is nothing really new. But, the progress in encouraging nonetheless. :)

As I said, we are not following any diet...we have both had it with those! I am thoroughly convinced that if you combined all the diets out there, you would only be able to drink water all day (in some cases, maybe not even that!). Since I was about 12 years old, I have had my experience with the variety of dieting methods. Many of them worked for awhile, none were permanent.

The first thing we did, was start using our Wii Fit Plus again. :) It's a fun way to get exercise in, especially in the middle of winter. Hubby began tracking his calories, then a friend of mine referred me to a free website where you can set calorie goals and track calories. This was wonderful, since I'm not the speediest person when it comes to doing math in my head, and I have a hard time remembering things that aren't right in front of me. :) Hubby set his calorie goal, and I entered my weight, height, and activity level into the website and it gave me my calorie goal. THAT'S IT. All we do is make sure and stay under our calorie goal every day, and do some form of exercise every day. Sunday is our free day...we don't track calories, but we don't go obnoxious, either. We just take a day where we're not worrying about how many calories we have, and maybe treat ourselves to something we wouldn't indulge in during the week.

At first, we just stuck with our current way of eating, but making sure we didn't go over our daily calories. However, over time, we learned that making healthier decisions regarding food meant that we could eat more, thus keeping our bodies satisfied throughout the day. It also meant more energy and more efficient workouts. We still have our share of less-than-healthy food in the house, but control (not just portion control, but SELF-control as well!) is the key. If I have calories left over, it's okay to have a serving of Twizzlers...just not half the bag! We have really gotten into the habit of measuring out our food, even our snacks, and sticking to the portions. That way, we're not in front of the computer or TV with a bag of chips or something similar, and of course, before you know it, they're almost gone! I have not done that once since we started in mid-January.

And I just have to say, I am so proud of my husband! It is really because of him that we finally decided to get this kick-started once and for all. It was about that time that he started school to be a firefighter, and he realized that if he really wanted this to happen, he HAD to get into shape, no ifs, ands, or buts. No "Well, I just really don't FEEL like working out today." It's just not an option with what he's training for.

And of course, ALL the credit goes to God! It is by His grace alone that we even got started, let alone made it this far. I thank Him every single time I look in the mirror or step on the scale and see a change. He alone is our strength!

Getting back into the swing of things

Oh, boy, there is so much on my plate right now it's not even funny. But the Good Lord has been getting me through. :) Yes, I have obviously taken a blogging break, and for now, I am taking a bit of a break from my Proverbs 31 study.

I kicked off the New Year with my birthday, and then an exacerbation of my MS symptoms. We had hosted Christmas, and with all I had going on, I had missed a few of my shots. The medication I had to take to help with the exacerbation took me on a whirlwind of not-so-fun side effects that lasted longer than usual. But, I'm all better now, and don't plan on missing my shots like that again!

The hubby took on another job as a paid on-call firefighter at our local fire station. As such, he is now going to school again to further his training. I am so proud of him! It has meant even more diligence is needed from me on the homefront, but I thrive on the pressure. ;) I came up with a much better routine for my household tasks, and it has been working great so far! I will try and post more details sometime this week.

Also, both the hubby and I have been losing weight! We are not on any particular diet (I have been sworn off diets for quite awhile now), just watching our calories and making sure we try and get in some exercise everyday. During these winter months, the Wii Fit has been working great for us. I have lost 11 pounds since mid-January, and I feel great and am looking forward to many more pounds lost! :)

Speaking of winter months, I do believe it is officially March and I have a bad case of spring fever! During the day here, it's been beautiful, and the snow is quickly melting away. I cannot wait to throw open all the windows and get some fresh air into this house.

As far as the kids go, I see it's time to get back to training better. Isaac, who's now almost 20 months old, has not been responding to "no" very well and has begun throwing tantrums over everything! Most people say it's because of his red hair, but I know better...it's because of a lack of consistency from Mamma.

I'd like to get back to the Proverbs 31 study soon, especially during this season in my life. It may be busy, but what better time is there to study what the Proverbs 31 woman does? :)