What can I say? It has been a crazy year. I am so glad that I decided to take a chance on me and get the band. I firmly believe that there is absolutely no way that I ever would have made it 70 pounds down without the band.
There is a part of me that is a little disappointed in myself because I know that with only a few minor changes, I would have been at goal weight today and not still another 25 pounds or so away. But if I was going to be totally honest with myself, I wasn't sure this would really work. I have to say that my band has worked for me inspite of me, not because of me.
I have learned to live with my new eating lifestyle (maybe, each day is different). I still enjoy a cookie or some candy and please don't take away my ice cream. But I have made it a full year and know that because I have lost 70 pounds living my life and not being a nazi about food consumption, that I can live the rest of my life with my band.
I would call that a success! What do you think?
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
A New Perspective...
I am sure that some of you know that we have our struggles with Connie from time to time. We have been blessed with several good weeks lately, almost so that we might have forgotten how bad it can be sometimes. Well, this week has been really tough with her. I find that when I am stressed about being a mom and always doing the right thing, I go to the internet and read other mom's blogs. I follow many blogs here (too many probably). Today I realize that everything really must be kept in perspective. There is always someone else fighting a bigger battle than we are fighting.
This was written by a mom with her daughter at home on hospice care…
"Towards the end of a pregnancy, a mother will wake up to go to the bathroom every few hours. I think this is the body’s way of preparing you for a newborn and the sleepless nights that come along with it. Layla now spends most of her days sleeping. 30-45 minutes after she wakes up, she is ready to lay down and sleep again. Is this God’s way of preparing me for all the quiet time that is coming soon? The house is quiet. I am able to go through the motions of laundry, dishes, cooking and picking up without interruptions. But I WANT interruptions. I WANT Layla to be under my feet asking for cookies. I WANT to hear her playing with her toys. I WANT to take 45 minutes to unload the dishwasher because she keeps trying to help. For every time I uttered the words “I just can’t get anything done with these kids under my feet all day” I am eternally regretful. The days that I looked forward to naptime so I could get a grocery list made, or finally fold all the piles of laundry…I regret those days too. If I could do it all again, I’d enjoy EVERY SINGLE WAKING MOMENT I had with her. I would never wish for her to sit still or take a nap or go to bed early. I would never look forward to the days when she could sit through an entire episode of Dora silently. I would treasure every second with her."
Ever since Dad passed away, I have been struggling to be sure that I am enjoying the time I have with the important people in my life. When we need patience with each other or one of the kids, we should remember how lucky we are to just have them in our lives for one more day.
I vow to try to remember that we are never promised more than the present and to really take the time to love ALL of the times with my family...even the difficult times.
This was written by a mom with her daughter at home on hospice care…
"Towards the end of a pregnancy, a mother will wake up to go to the bathroom every few hours. I think this is the body’s way of preparing you for a newborn and the sleepless nights that come along with it. Layla now spends most of her days sleeping. 30-45 minutes after she wakes up, she is ready to lay down and sleep again. Is this God’s way of preparing me for all the quiet time that is coming soon? The house is quiet. I am able to go through the motions of laundry, dishes, cooking and picking up without interruptions. But I WANT interruptions. I WANT Layla to be under my feet asking for cookies. I WANT to hear her playing with her toys. I WANT to take 45 minutes to unload the dishwasher because she keeps trying to help. For every time I uttered the words “I just can’t get anything done with these kids under my feet all day” I am eternally regretful. The days that I looked forward to naptime so I could get a grocery list made, or finally fold all the piles of laundry…I regret those days too. If I could do it all again, I’d enjoy EVERY SINGLE WAKING MOMENT I had with her. I would never wish for her to sit still or take a nap or go to bed early. I would never look forward to the days when she could sit through an entire episode of Dora silently. I would treasure every second with her."
Ever since Dad passed away, I have been struggling to be sure that I am enjoying the time I have with the important people in my life. When we need patience with each other or one of the kids, we should remember how lucky we are to just have them in our lives for one more day.
I vow to try to remember that we are never promised more than the present and to really take the time to love ALL of the times with my family...even the difficult times.
Monday, March 22, 2010
It has been a year...
It's hard to believe that it has been a year today since I was able to hold my Daddy's hand and tell him how much I love him. It seems unreal to me.
I am coming off of a fantastic week with the kids only to be entering what might be a difficult week. I am realizing that I have a terrible denial side to me. I am not sure that I have every really grieved for him. I still have his picture on the fridge and in my office. I have spent the last year getting used to looking at them without crying...until this month. Last week would have been his 60th birthday. I think I missed calling him on his birthday more than I missed him calling me on my birthday. Not sure why that would be.
But, this too shall pass. I can still hear him talking to me, mostly when I am doing to much or not taking the time out that I should to just live in the current moment. I did learn that from him. Life is about so much more than our jobs and the next place we have to be. I know that I get frustrated with the kids because I have so many self-imposed demands on my time and I am really trying to just "be". That has been a tough lesson and not one that I think I will ever master.
I love you Daddy! And to anyone else, please take care of yourself (no one else can do it for you) and treasure every moment that you have with your loved ones.
I am coming off of a fantastic week with the kids only to be entering what might be a difficult week. I am realizing that I have a terrible denial side to me. I am not sure that I have every really grieved for him. I still have his picture on the fridge and in my office. I have spent the last year getting used to looking at them without crying...until this month. Last week would have been his 60th birthday. I think I missed calling him on his birthday more than I missed him calling me on my birthday. Not sure why that would be.
But, this too shall pass. I can still hear him talking to me, mostly when I am doing to much or not taking the time out that I should to just live in the current moment. I did learn that from him. Life is about so much more than our jobs and the next place we have to be. I know that I get frustrated with the kids because I have so many self-imposed demands on my time and I am really trying to just "be". That has been a tough lesson and not one that I think I will ever master.
I love you Daddy! And to anyone else, please take care of yourself (no one else can do it for you) and treasure every moment that you have with your loved ones.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Walt Disney World
It has been so long since I posted. We decided to actually attempt another family vacation this year and so we ended up at Disney World in Orlando, FL for Spring Break. It was AMAZING! Neither Jeff nor I have ever been so I had no idea what I was doing when I booked the trip. There were so many choices but it turned out great. I did learn some things so if anyone decides to go, I would be happy to let you in on what we figured out.
All of the kids had fun, including Jeff and I. Amy thought she was too big for the characters and in spite of my encouragement, she refused to get up and dance with Prince Charming! Brad was just beside himself with the whole thing...characters, rides, junk food, you name it! And then Connie...she has amazing stamina.
We left here on Saturday morning and drove to Mariana, FL. Then we got up about 5am on Sunday morning. We met up with a friend of Jeff's from high school and had lunch. Then shortly after arriving at the resort cabin, we decided to go check out Magin Kingdom. They had extra hours for people staying at the disney resorts, so we ended up staying until 3am! I still can't believe it. Everyone had a blast but as soon as we got into the car, Amy and Brad were asleep. But not Connie! She was still going strong. We hunted up something to snack on and about 5am we were pretty much begging Connie to go to sleep.
We slept in the next day since we pretty much were able to do all of the rides at the Magic Kingdom. Then we had to find a camera store because Connie got excited and bounced our camera off the stroller and broke the lens. But I suppose it worked out since I now have a much better lens even if I wasn't planning on spending that money during the trip.
We had several character dining experiences and several mornings Connie fell asleep just after breakfast and slept until lunch. On Thursday she actually slept until about 4pm. Thank goodness it was our last day.
We finally got home this afternoon and we are thankful for the chance we had to go. We were able to spend some great family time and we made some great family memories.
Here are some pics of the week.
All of the kids had fun, including Jeff and I. Amy thought she was too big for the characters and in spite of my encouragement, she refused to get up and dance with Prince Charming! Brad was just beside himself with the whole thing...characters, rides, junk food, you name it! And then Connie...she has amazing stamina.
We left here on Saturday morning and drove to Mariana, FL. Then we got up about 5am on Sunday morning. We met up with a friend of Jeff's from high school and had lunch. Then shortly after arriving at the resort cabin, we decided to go check out Magin Kingdom. They had extra hours for people staying at the disney resorts, so we ended up staying until 3am! I still can't believe it. Everyone had a blast but as soon as we got into the car, Amy and Brad were asleep. But not Connie! She was still going strong. We hunted up something to snack on and about 5am we were pretty much begging Connie to go to sleep.
We slept in the next day since we pretty much were able to do all of the rides at the Magic Kingdom. Then we had to find a camera store because Connie got excited and bounced our camera off the stroller and broke the lens. But I suppose it worked out since I now have a much better lens even if I wasn't planning on spending that money during the trip.
We had several character dining experiences and several mornings Connie fell asleep just after breakfast and slept until lunch. On Thursday she actually slept until about 4pm. Thank goodness it was our last day.
We finally got home this afternoon and we are thankful for the chance we had to go. We were able to spend some great family time and we made some great family memories.
Here are some pics of the week.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Snow in Houston!!!
Well, the snow fairy is here early today. They have been saying all week that it might snow today. Jeff just sent me these pictures from home. It is supposed to clear out by later tonight and just be VERY cold the rest of the weekend.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Wow! It's December already!!!
I have been so busy keeping up with life, that I haven't been posting on the blog. I have sure enjoyed keeping up with everyone else's activities though.
There seems to be another phenomenom similar to about 2.5 years ago...babies, babies, everywhere. At least this time there is only 3 at once. Last time there were 6 babies born in our respective families over about 30 days. I am so happy for all of our recently expanded families. Babies are such a blessing.
As for our family, where should I begin. As most know, Jeff had surgery back in August. Well, after some time of wondering what all was going on and him not really feeling better for too long, he was put into the hospital again on October 17th. The tragedy there was that it was the day we were having Connie's 5th birthday party! (I will have to post pics of that later, but here is one that my brother sent me with her cake in the background.)
After one week in the hospital, he had another bowel resection done and spent one more week in the hospital. This time, they were not able to do the surgery laproscopically. So he is still at home recovering. We think he will finally be back at work next week.
So he and I both missed Connie's 5th birthday and we were really bummed about that. In fact only last weekend did I get around to giving her the present we bought for her...roller skates! She got the hang of it really quickly.
Then about the time Jeff was home and on the road to recovery, I had surgery. I decided to go ahead and get the lap band done. It was a tough decision, but so far has been really easy. It won't stay that way and already there have been some major changes but I am sure that in the end, it will all be worth it.
We decided that since the last few months have been so hectic that we would stay home for Thanksgiving. Amy and Brad were gone for the week to their dad's house so it was quiet. We ordered a catered turkey meal and then just made some appetizer type snacks and a dessert or two. It was really nice.
Then since I am a lucky person, my birthday fell the day after Thanksgiving this year. Jeff cooked fajitas and made a huge whole spread to go with them. Mom and Dad were in town to relax with us so we enjoyed our Friday at home. The rest of the weekend was just as quiet. I had grand plans to clean out Brad's room while he was gone for the week, but I guess I took a few naps instead.
Oh, and I almost forgot! We got a new puppy at the beginning of October. She is a Miniature Schnauzer. She will be pretty little. We expect her to get between 4-6 pounds full grown. She is about 4 months old. I know these pics are hard to really see how little she is/was, but that is my shoe is was trying to play with.
There seems to be another phenomenom similar to about 2.5 years ago...babies, babies, everywhere. At least this time there is only 3 at once. Last time there were 6 babies born in our respective families over about 30 days. I am so happy for all of our recently expanded families. Babies are such a blessing.
As for our family, where should I begin. As most know, Jeff had surgery back in August. Well, after some time of wondering what all was going on and him not really feeling better for too long, he was put into the hospital again on October 17th. The tragedy there was that it was the day we were having Connie's 5th birthday party! (I will have to post pics of that later, but here is one that my brother sent me with her cake in the background.)
After one week in the hospital, he had another bowel resection done and spent one more week in the hospital. This time, they were not able to do the surgery laproscopically. So he is still at home recovering. We think he will finally be back at work next week.
So he and I both missed Connie's 5th birthday and we were really bummed about that. In fact only last weekend did I get around to giving her the present we bought for her...roller skates! She got the hang of it really quickly.
Then about the time Jeff was home and on the road to recovery, I had surgery. I decided to go ahead and get the lap band done. It was a tough decision, but so far has been really easy. It won't stay that way and already there have been some major changes but I am sure that in the end, it will all be worth it.
We decided that since the last few months have been so hectic that we would stay home for Thanksgiving. Amy and Brad were gone for the week to their dad's house so it was quiet. We ordered a catered turkey meal and then just made some appetizer type snacks and a dessert or two. It was really nice.
Then since I am a lucky person, my birthday fell the day after Thanksgiving this year. Jeff cooked fajitas and made a huge whole spread to go with them. Mom and Dad were in town to relax with us so we enjoyed our Friday at home. The rest of the weekend was just as quiet. I had grand plans to clean out Brad's room while he was gone for the week, but I guess I took a few naps instead.
Oh, and I almost forgot! We got a new puppy at the beginning of October. She is a Miniature Schnauzer. She will be pretty little. We expect her to get between 4-6 pounds full grown. She is about 4 months old. I know these pics are hard to really see how little she is/was, but that is my shoe is was trying to play with.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
School has begun...
I am really not sure at this point who is happier?
Amy was so thrilled to be back among her friends. I mean really...she's been with family all summer! she will be starting volleyball tryouts this afternoon. She is not all that excited about it but she is in athletics anyway so that she can be in basketball later in the year. She decided that she might as well try out for volleyball instead of doing nothing all season. I am so proud of her! She is really an awesome person and I am so grateful that I get to be her mom! I just can't believe that she is in 8th grade already! I still cry when I remember back to her first day in kindergarten.
Brad started 4th grade yesterday. He is growing up so much too! Like all his friends, he was happy to be back at school. He has the sweetest teacher and I am happy about that. He has been lucky the last few years to get awesome teachers!
Connie woke up yesterday so excited to be going to the first day of school. Now, mind you, she is going to the same daycare she has been going to for the last 2 years. I guess she was just buzzing from Amy and Brad's excitement.
They were all so easy to get out of bed yesterday. Why is the second day so much harder? It was terrible trying to get them up this morning. I guess the new has already begun to wear off.
Well, here are a couple of pics from our BIG kids....
Amy was so thrilled to be back among her friends. I mean really...she's been with family all summer! she will be starting volleyball tryouts this afternoon. She is not all that excited about it but she is in athletics anyway so that she can be in basketball later in the year. She decided that she might as well try out for volleyball instead of doing nothing all season. I am so proud of her! She is really an awesome person and I am so grateful that I get to be her mom! I just can't believe that she is in 8th grade already! I still cry when I remember back to her first day in kindergarten.
Brad started 4th grade yesterday. He is growing up so much too! Like all his friends, he was happy to be back at school. He has the sweetest teacher and I am happy about that. He has been lucky the last few years to get awesome teachers!
Connie woke up yesterday so excited to be going to the first day of school. Now, mind you, she is going to the same daycare she has been going to for the last 2 years. I guess she was just buzzing from Amy and Brad's excitement.
They were all so easy to get out of bed yesterday. Why is the second day so much harder? It was terrible trying to get them up this morning. I guess the new has already begun to wear off.
Well, here are a couple of pics from our BIG kids....
Bowling, anyone?
We had our back to school cub scout party last weekend. It was lots of fun...to watch! I am not a bowler and since Jeff just had surgery, he was only along for the ride and to get out of the house for a bit. But the kids all had lots of fun!
This video is a bit hard to watch. Amy took it with my digital camera and it bounces quite a bit. It's cute though.
Does anyone have a cure for those silly faces that Connie makes? We have been trying for a couple of months to get her to stop? I especially get irritated when someone talks to her and her only response is some silly face!
I hope everyone else has/had a great first day of school!
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