Flat Tummy Foods!

Sounds awesome huh??

You've gotta go here..............
http://getfitandyummy.com/blog/13-flat-tummy-foods/

Really, every little tip helps. What can it hurt?

More Than 24

Whew! We made it through the weekend. Friday must have had 28 hours in it and I really had 30 hours of stuff to day. Some how it all got done. This morning I talked to my dear friend Kimberly...her Friday was the same as mine. Which brought me to the conculsion that there really was 28 hours in that day.

Today my inspiration comes from Phillipians 1:6
Christ has started a good work in you and He will bring it to completion.

What are the messages from your past that you accepted as truth? It is possible that they are not the truth at all. You were wonderfully and fearfully created...God doesn't make junk! (yes, I'm preaching to myself.) ha

Have a wonderful Day!

2 B Different, You Have 2 B DIFFERENT!

If you haven't heard of my favorite fitness person you really must go check her out.

Holly Rigsby...she is the original Yummy Mummy!
http://getfitandyummy.com

Holly sends me great emails every few days and I have written down all of her posted workouts. If you want to look different and feel different from the rest of the world then you need to act different. Changing your diet to something healthy and non-processed and working out in a whole new way. I LOVE IT! Ok, most of the time I love it. Well, once in a while I love it. ha ha Really what I love is the way I feel and the way I can see my body transforming.

Enough chat...just go there. I hope I posted the right link.

Phase I Complete!

Today marks the last day of the first 6-week phase of a new lifestyle for me. It is truly a day of celebration for me.

April 1st I joined a class called PRISM. It is a weight loss program based on biblical principals. I have learned if you look at it like a diet the success rate will be just like all the other diets out there...not lasting. Phase I strips you down to the basics of eating healthy natural foods and breaking emotional ties to food. Sounds funny but SO NECCESSARY! For 6 wks I have not eaten processed sugar, any flour, nasty toxic oils, or processed foods of any kind (ok there were just a couple of slip-ups). Starting tomorrow there will be changes to my diet, adding in some foods but forever the nasty toxic stuff is gone. It sounds difficult and to be honest the first week is so bad I thought I was going through a drug rehab program...I felt terrible.

Today I weighed and took my measurements again. Woo Hoo!! I have lost 18.5 lbs and lost 13 1/4 inches. SWEET!!!! I think I'll go eat a big old piece of a chocolate cake to celebrate. Just Kidding!

Tomorrow I start Phase II. Please come along side of me with encouraging words and supportive prayers. This is hard and I still have a long way to go. Thanks for being my friend and support.

Happy Mother's Day

Motherhood is the very thing that can take me to the peaks and valleys, all within the same day. 11 years ago I had no idea what I was gettting myself into when Chris and I decided to start a family. To read a book on parenting is almost a joke, you must experience the ride to even begin to understand the depth of love hiding deep within you. Not every moment of mommy-hood is my favorite but it does seem to get better the longer I have children. Nothing was better than that first moment that I saw her and then touched her perfect, unbelmished velvety skin. I hope I never forget that spot in time.

Chris and I always knew that we would have more than one child but when baby number two was growing and developing within my body I started to wonder, "How does a mother love 2 babies?" I couldn't imagine this great love being split in two. God did another amazing feat. My love didn't split in two, it was multiplied by two and then three.

Celebrating motherhood is lovely. However I find myself building this day up in my mind and who can really compete with my fairlytale expectations? I was recognized in church. I ate out with my family. I picked out beautiful flowers for the yard. I spent several hours outside with the family. I opened precious handmade gifts from the girls. What a fantastic day! Yet, my favorite moment of recognition is when Olivia runs to me with a warm hug in the morning or when Emma tells me (and only me) about a cute boy at school or when Reagan tells me that I make the best food ever. Those are the real moments that no one sees but the very moments that fill my heart with such gratitude. What a blessed life!

To all those who read this blog, I pray you know the love of a child. It will change you forever.

Scrappiness!

Sorry, I'm not the best at getting good pics of my LOs.

It's MAY DAY!

Happy May Day! Every year on May 1st about this time of day I think I really should have made may day baskets with the girls and then I commit myself to doing it next year. Well, next year is here and we still didn't make May Day baskets. No longer do I feel like the bad mom of the year. We don't have candy in this house and I doubt any of their friends really want cute little baskets filled with carrots, grapes and cucumber sticks. You see, I'm being a great mom by not embarrassing my children infront of their peers.

This weekend while Chris, his dad and brother-in-law are fishing (it's suppose to rain around KC) the girls and I will be at home working hard, one might even say slaving away. Ok, I'm lying. I plan to be scrapping the hours away while the girls run free in the neighborhood. Scraplove.com is hosting a cyber crop. It'll be fun and sounds like lots of challenges and contests that will stretch my scrapping ability. Come over and have fun with us. There are prizes from Jenni Bowlin...I gotta get me some of that.

A Lion Among Us

Look at this sweet kitty of ours. In an attempt to save $40 I started in on Vincent's Lion Cut last night. I didn't even have to fight him, he complied with my constant turning, buzzing and shaving. Ulla from PetCo is much better than I but I saved our family $40! I think that means I can go shopping at the local scrappy store. ha

Big Weekend

Emma and her fellow 4th grade strings were very impressive at the spring concert.

Don't think that it's serious business all the time when you play in the orchestra

The Yellow Jacket season premiere was on a cold Saturday morning. As I sat on the bleachers in my heavy coat wrapped up in a blanket I had a hard time believing just the day before I got a sunburn while playing in the park with Olivia.

BEFORE: note the ghetto counter tops. Not everyone could live with 3 different counter tops. ICK!!
Chris and FIL tearing apart the old.
AFTER!! There's still some work to be done, like the back splash but SO MUCH BETTER!
Love my new black sink and oil rubbed bronze faucet!

Ahh, So Sweet

3 Years 4 Months 19 Days

Today we are celebrating Olivia's One thousand Two Hundred Thirty-fifth day of life. I don't know if celebrating is the correct word but I had her pictures taken today. There were so many cute ones, I really had a hard time making a decision. My goal was to get a good close-up black and white picture for my wall. While I was there, I scheduled family pictures. We'll see how that goes.

I am a lover of lists. Usually my daily list is more than even my friend April could do...she can do more any other person I know!! There is power in marking off items. To be honest, sometimes I wonder what I did all day. Being a SAHM (stay-at-home-mom) is busy and time consuming but at the end of the day it can be challenging to "see" what tasks were completed. All that just to say, today I made a short list and completed everything. WooHoo! Tomorrow I will start fresh with a new list of chores. Some chores actually repeat from day to day...on a bad day I write them down, just so I have something to cross off. You know... wake up-check; feed the kids-check; workout-check. You get the idea. ha ha

My list today...
wash windows - check
scrub the floors - check...already dirty again. :(
get Liv's pictures taken - check
dinner in Lincoln - check
work out with April - check
Listen to Dave Ramsey - half check.

Big weekend her in town: Emma kicks off her softball season with games on Saturday and Monday. Thus begins the summer of bleacher butt for this mama! One other note worthy item, George Clooney will be here. Sounds like he's coming over for dinner Saturday night. The word is out, Chris' smoked meats are to die for.

Happy weekend to you all.

Who I Am

When I look in the mirror, who do I see,
Standing there staring back at me?

Is it someone I know who soars like a dove,
Or someone I feel not even God could love?

"What can I change?" I cry to myself,
To make me love ME... take ME off the shelf.

The answer comes simply and so amazingly true,
It's turning my life over completely to You.

Lord help me to love myself as I am,
The person for whom was given The Lamb.

Help me to grow, please loosen the chains,
Let me forget past sorrows and pains.

Teach me to accept the person You made,
Give guidance to know what will last and not fade.
(Belva Peden 1991)

Today is a new day!

Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day.
~ Lamentations 3:23, NLT

Sometimes I just need this reminder.

Have a great Tax Day!!! I have heard that some post offices are NOT staying open late tonight...budget issues. SO don't procrastinate!

Happy Easter

Christ is Risen...He is Risen Indeed!Easter 2007

Easter Sunday is such a beautiful reminder of what is important in life. Yes, we colored eggs; we had Easter baskets waiting for the girls this morning; and we staged a fun little egg hunt in Nana's living room but the girls know the One we are celebrating. He has nothing to do with candy or bunnies laying eggs, which I might say is a very odd thought.

I have been a very bad blogger lately. This week was spring break which left me very little time to play on the computer.
#1Our family was blessed by being able to help our friends, Tim and Susan get ready for their move. It is my hope that God really wants us to stay right here in our comfy little house until the kids are grown, then they can help us move. It's just so much work to prep a house for sale.
#2We have also been working on our kitchen, I can't wait to share photos when it's completed. Any great comments on the purchase of a kitchen faucet? I need some direction!
#3Chris and Ryan-Dean finished dry-walling in the basement at Dean and Linda's (my in-laws).
#4The thing that has really rocked my world in the last 12 days has been the detox of sugar and flour from my system. Apparently, I was grumpy. :) I'm really not wondering because my mother-in-law informed me of that and Chris denies it. ha ha It was rough on all of us for about 3 days. Now I feel so much better.
As you can see, I have plenty of valid reasons to be a blog slacker.

Tomorrow after I have had several cups of Joe and a good start on my to-do list I will hopefully post some recent pictures. Until then, please say something kind to the one you love. It only takes a minute of your time and a smile. Why do we treat strangers better than the people we call family? If you've been hurt by them, pray about it and ask for strength. You may still hurt but the healing process will have begun!

A quick shout out to Val...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! See you tomorrow for lunch.

All Kinds of Excitement!

This is a picture of my soon to be new counter top. I got a quote and now I just have to pick out the tile for the back splash, faucet, new sink and hardware for the cabinets. I don't think we'll be doing all of it this month but I'll be ready when the time comes. Now that is exciting! :)
Today I got tickets to the Natalie Grant concert, she'll be in town in a week...CAN'T WAIT! Emma and I are having a girls night out. I wonder if I can work in a pedicure for us too. :)

Ok, so this isn't actually exciting but I'm pretending. The first couch we ever bought has been in our family room since May. It's not pretty...not at all! YIKES! I have been looking from time to time for the perfect leather couch. My idea of perfect is much different from my husband's idea of perfect. This week Chris surprised me with HIS version of perfect. Praise God for a husband who wants to meet my needs...I mean wants. It is a sleeper and it is some kind of leather and it is brown. I should have given a little more detail.
Friends spending the night...that's pretty exciting. Emma and her new friend Sam.

Right now KU is beating Michigan State...it's all good. My bracket is looking kind of sad, KU better win or else I might as well give up all together.

The Servant's Heart

Here are a few pics from my trip to Kentucky. I need to steal some pics from some of the other people who were on the trip. I guess I got tired of taking pictures. Maybe I just wasn't thinking straight after several days of getting 3-4 hours of sleep at night. I was trying to keep up with 20 year olds, guess I'm not 20 anymore. ha


Here I am driving through St Louis...the arch in the background.
First Baptist Church in Salyersville, KY. We stayed here the whole week and spent some hard days working in the fellowship hall here. This church was built by volunteers, there has been something like 5000 volunteers come through this building. Their desire is to house volunteers who want to come work in the area. This was a nice facility...mattresses, showers, a kitchen. I'm guessing it's much better than Mexico conditions. :)
This picture was taken upstairs in the fellowship hall at the New Hope Baptist Church. This church has had NO volunteers helping with the construction. I was able to work and hang out with this great group...everyone from GI except Caleb. Brother George is an amazing guy with a heart for the lost. I'd go back tomorrow to help finish this building if it were possible. They also had the best food! :)
Yes, that's me with a chop saw cutting metal beams. I cut about 50 of these and loved every minute of it. I also got to construct and put up walls of these beams. I felt so empowered.
These last 2 pictures are taken in the Index Community Church. We worked on their fellowship hall as well. Brother Bob is an amazing man who over sees something like 100 churches in the area. (that might be an exaggeration) He was working right beside us all week. You can pray for another great man in this area. Tom has put in countless hours helping at his wife's church but does not know the Lord as his savior.

It was at this church that we had 2 of our students get baptized the day we were heading back to Nebraska. Now that's what it's all about!

There are so many stories to share. Although this trip was not what I expected and truthfully I even found myself disappointed a few times, still I found God right there in the midst of it all. I realized that it doesn't matter what I do to serve here on Earth because it's not about me. It's about the One I serve, my Lord and Savior. It's my heart's desire to be more of a servant. Not just on a mission trip but here in my home city and for my family.

Quote for today:
How much must you hate someone to not share your belief in God?
by Penn (of Penn and Teller, yes he's an atheist)

On a Mission!

Three 15 passenger vans pull out of Nebraska tomorrow east bound for Kentucky. I am so excited for this opportunity to share my faith, my wealth and my love with complete strangers. There are some sacrifices (like good coffee) but there are also some incredible gifts that I will receive through the course of this 8 day mission trip. I do think we will all learn to redefine wealth. Although I know better, I could name some people who I think have reached the "wealth rung" on the ladder to financial success. The truth is most of the world and probably even lots of America would consider my life to be a good representation of wealth. Yes, I am so blessed.

Please pray for this journey that I am about to leave on. If you would right now jot my name and the word Kentucky on a post-it note, just put that piece of paper somewhere you will see it frequently. We need lots of prayer for safe travel, relationship building, spreading God's word and completion of the task put before us.

Tonight I have partially numb fingers after writing letters to each of my girls. They'll each have a message from me every day of the week. Oh how I am going to miss those sweet little smiles and huge hugs. I know they are in very capable hands so why do I keep thinking no one can care for them the way I do? Kind of a funny little game of pride I have running through my head I guess.

If you have a moment, give Chris a call. I'm sure he'll need a little distraction. Also, tell him, "your wife loves you and misses you terribly!" Thanks.

I have no idea if I will have access to a computer or even if my cell phone will work in the mountains. So I will say ta ta for now.

Preserving Memories of Life.

Don't you just love these ultrasound pictures? I remember so well when my 3 little girls (one at a time) were in the womb... seeing a picture of their living little bodies was just so amazing. This precious little life begins at the very moment of conception. When you sit in the doctor's office listening to the heart beat and watching the tiniest of limbs move and even punch their mommy's tummy how can anyone question the fact of life? This reminds me of the very important legislation that could be turned into law. Look up the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) and consider what you can do as a citizen of this great country. Don't rely on emails that are floating around, there's so much untrue propaganda on both sides of this issue. I have a link below on the right side of my blog. There's also info right here on snopes... http://www.snopes.com/politics/medical/choice.asp

Sorry about going political. There is so much pain and trauma associated with this subject. People need to know that this is not a quick fix and it is certainly not what we are called to do as Christians or even compassionate human beings.

No More Mexico

God is faithful. He has provided an alternate location for our spring break missionary group. As luck would have it, the day I wrote my last post there were some terrible crimes committed in Saltillo, Mexico so the CSF leadership shut us down. I had every bit of confidence in Dan and obviously God to have the wisdom to keep us safe. We are now going to Kentucky. Some of the kids are so disappointed however I think this will be a wonderful experience for all of us. This specific location is a very poor area, truly we will be surprised and surely saddened by this "third world country" within our very own United States.

Please continue to pray for this mission trip that lives would be changed and that each of us going will be challenged to continue our mission work right where we live the rest of the year. As of recently I have felt the Spirit move within me in ways I have never experienced. I'm so excited to have this opportunity.

Word of the Day: Chiastic Structure
Here's a definition for you-inverted parallelism. Whatever that means right?
Example: Don't live to eat, eat to live.

Mexico

My trip to Mexico is quickly approaching, less than 2 weeks. I am so excited to see what God has before me. Am I nervous? A little. Does it require faith and a desire to serve God above all else? You bet it does!

There's so much to do around her to prepare for my trip. One detail is finding a smaller purse sized bible. I also need to reload my ipod. I am really getting sick of some of those songs. My personal challenge for tonight is to make a list of every activity for the kids while I am gone. I am so use to being the one who takes the kids, prepares the kids and in general keeps them on schedule I can't imagine someone else doing it for me. The truth is, they'll be fine whether it all gets done or not.

I want to thank any and all of you who have taken time to support me in this trip whether it was by an encouraging comment, prayers or financial support. There have been several loved ones who have voiced concerns about this trip and we are keeping those comments in mind and watching what the state department has to say. Above all we are praying for wisdom and safety. My scripture for the day:

If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.

~ James 3:13, NLT

It is certainly our prayer to be humble before the Lord and wait for His direction.