Well hello there to my two readers! Remember me?
Sorry this space has been so quiet. I have been gone most of August, and the rest of the summer I've been in the garden and mostly working in the basement....which is almost done...and my husband has set me a deadline of next week Thursday so I am not doing much else besides that.
But I had to check in quickly to let you know about this giveaway at one of my favorite blog sites, Life In A Shoe. Kim, owner and author of this hilarious and charming blog, is giving away two videos to one lucky reader:
1) Shaky Town about the culture of San Francisco and how Christians are being persecuted there and how they are taking a stand for Biblical principles, and
2) The Monstrous Regiment of Women, about the impact of feminism throughout history and into today and what that has meant to Christianity. This is the one I'm most interested in viewing...and taking notes on!
Click here to read more.
I'll check back in again as soon as I can!
~Sunshine~
Monday, August 22, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
It's Spring!
 |
| Tulips in our yard last May. Can't wait to see them again! |
How do I know this?
I have gone through two kleenex boxes in three days.
My eyes are so itchy I cannot even put in my contacts.
My nose alternately runs and bleeds.
Yes....it is most definitely spring.
How do I know this?
I wake up to birds chirping in the morning.
SUNSHINE!
No snow (for now, it is South Dakota after all)
There are hints of green things just poking through all around the neighborhood.
The kids are all over the place on our block. Riding bikes, running around, playing with sidewalk chalk. (I am so thankful to see them outside and not always inside in front of a TV!)
My husband is talking nonstop about Ultimate Frisbee.
I am working hard on planning our garden. I am clueless, but still working hard.
...and I LOVE IT. Bloody noses and all!!!
WELCOME SPRING!!!
The beautiful weather has been most encouraging for the Weight Watchers exercise program. Our group is doing a 5K on June 5. I don't know if I'll be doing that, but my church friend and I are working towards being able to run it anyway! We started today, alternating walking and running a block for 10 blocks. It went great! I used to love running. I hope that I can get back into it like I was in college...I could run 5 miles at a stretch then!
Speaking of Weight Watchers, my weigh-in yesterday was good! Lost 4.8 lbs in two weeks, so I've lost 17.2 lbs so far! YAY! Only 45 lbs or so to go!
In one of my previous posts, I mentioned that our ladies' study is reading Disciplines of a Godly Woman. I led the lesson last week and we talked about ways that we can bring the Gospel back onto the top of our list of priorities and at the center of our lives. Here's a link to a post I wrote about that...good things to keep in mind, always! Disciplines Study
Well, a friend is on her way over and we are going to walk ourselves silly all around downtown! Hope you are enjoying a beautiful spring day too!
~Sunshine~
Thursday, March 31, 2011
If you need a little laugh
This happened a few months ago, but I thought of it again today and just wanted to share.
I was at my pastor's house. They have two young girls (E, 5; H,3) and baby boy D (will be 1 soon). D was napping and the girls, pastor's wife J, and I were eating lunch. J got up suddenly and said that D was crying and she was going to get him up.
E looks at me, concerned. "I didn't hear him!" she said, surprised.
Then, sudden comprehension dawning....."oooooooh," she said slowly, smiling, "My ears are too short."
Hope that made you smile!
~Sunshine~
I was at my pastor's house. They have two young girls (E, 5; H,3) and baby boy D (will be 1 soon). D was napping and the girls, pastor's wife J, and I were eating lunch. J got up suddenly and said that D was crying and she was going to get him up.
E looks at me, concerned. "I didn't hear him!" she said, surprised.
Then, sudden comprehension dawning....."oooooooh," she said slowly, smiling, "My ears are too short."
Hope that made you smile!
~Sunshine~
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
sigh....
I missed my weigh-in this week because I felt awful all day yesterday. Thankfully today I am fine. Last week I had lost a grand 1.6 lbs....but at least it was a loss!
I asked my husband if he could notice that I'd lost 12 pounds, because I sure didn't! He said my arms are smaller. It's true! and lately I've noticed my rings are pretty loose. So while I am pleased I am losing weight and loving how I feel after exercising, why is it that I am losing from my hands and arms and not from places I'd like to lose weight, like, say, my middle?! Well, hopefully pretty soon there will be nothing left to lose from those areas and I'll just have to burn fat from elsewhere, right? RIGHT????
I've really been enjoying the workout videos I check out from the library. My favorite is Jillian Michaels' 30 day shred. Unfortunately other library patrons also seem to love it and I am now third on the waiting list to get it back! I also do her "Trouble Zones" workout, that works a lot on the arms (hmmmmmmmm), abs, and er, posterior. I also do "Walk Away the Pounds" but that's more moderate...a nice way to cool down.
My friend from church who is doing the program with me was brave enough to suggest we work out together early on Tuesday and Thursday mornings after our small group Bible Study. It's going great so far! So nice to have someone else sweating through it with me!
Our college student (we are hosting a friend of mine while she does her internship in our town) has said she wants to start running, and I would like to join her. It's been a long time since I ran any distance. No better way than to just jump right in, right?
In non weight loss news, I am leading our new Women's Bible Study tonight. We are reading "Disciplines of a Godly Woman" by Barbara Hughes. We're only in the second chapter but I love it so far. It's given us a lot of discussion material and I feel like this book is really going to provide us not only a solid Biblical foundation for life, but helping us to better understand our role as women in this world. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it.
Hoping to write something more exciting soon!
~Sunshine~
I asked my husband if he could notice that I'd lost 12 pounds, because I sure didn't! He said my arms are smaller. It's true! and lately I've noticed my rings are pretty loose. So while I am pleased I am losing weight and loving how I feel after exercising, why is it that I am losing from my hands and arms and not from places I'd like to lose weight, like, say, my middle?! Well, hopefully pretty soon there will be nothing left to lose from those areas and I'll just have to burn fat from elsewhere, right? RIGHT????
I've really been enjoying the workout videos I check out from the library. My favorite is Jillian Michaels' 30 day shred. Unfortunately other library patrons also seem to love it and I am now third on the waiting list to get it back! I also do her "Trouble Zones" workout, that works a lot on the arms (hmmmmmmmm), abs, and er, posterior. I also do "Walk Away the Pounds" but that's more moderate...a nice way to cool down.
My friend from church who is doing the program with me was brave enough to suggest we work out together early on Tuesday and Thursday mornings after our small group Bible Study. It's going great so far! So nice to have someone else sweating through it with me!
Our college student (we are hosting a friend of mine while she does her internship in our town) has said she wants to start running, and I would like to join her. It's been a long time since I ran any distance. No better way than to just jump right in, right?
In non weight loss news, I am leading our new Women's Bible Study tonight. We are reading "Disciplines of a Godly Woman" by Barbara Hughes. We're only in the second chapter but I love it so far. It's given us a lot of discussion material and I feel like this book is really going to provide us not only a solid Biblical foundation for life, but helping us to better understand our role as women in this world. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it.
Hoping to write something more exciting soon!
~Sunshine~
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
5% goal reached! Hooray!
Today was my first weigh-in at Weight Watchers.
In two weeks I've lost 10.8 lbs, though that number may be a little off as I did not have a chance to eat anything before our meeting (oh the loveliness of early morning dental appointments!). Everyone was surprised--I guess that is not really typical at all, even though it is normal to lose more the first two weeks of the program. So I have reached my 5% goal already! YAY! (That means I've lost 5% of my starting weight).
I know that this will not be the case as time goes on--I have no lofty notions of losing 5 pounds every week! I do not think that is probably healthy!! I am hoping that I will do what is average on the program--about two pounds a week.
I have worked very hard at measuring my food and I think that made a big difference. I even ate out four times (highly irregular--usually we eat out once a month or not at all!) in the past two weeks without it causing too much difficulty with the Points system. And my homemade pizza, which is 7 points a slice, was even worked into that two weeks! If I get a craving for something sweet I pacify it with a piece of bread and a little bit of honey. Yum! Very filling too.
I have also been doing the 30 day shred with Jillian Michaels DVD, apparently she is on The Biggest Loser which I have not seen, but she is tough! I am doing the very easiest level and am pretty much sweating profusely and hurting by the end of the 20 minute workout! Oh but it is a good hurt!
Speaking of which I should go do my 20 minutes right now! I really do not want to return this DVD to the library! :)
Hoping to post some non-weight related news soon!
~Sunshine~
In two weeks I've lost 10.8 lbs, though that number may be a little off as I did not have a chance to eat anything before our meeting (oh the loveliness of early morning dental appointments!). Everyone was surprised--I guess that is not really typical at all, even though it is normal to lose more the first two weeks of the program. So I have reached my 5% goal already! YAY! (That means I've lost 5% of my starting weight).
I know that this will not be the case as time goes on--I have no lofty notions of losing 5 pounds every week! I do not think that is probably healthy!! I am hoping that I will do what is average on the program--about two pounds a week.
I have worked very hard at measuring my food and I think that made a big difference. I even ate out four times (highly irregular--usually we eat out once a month or not at all!) in the past two weeks without it causing too much difficulty with the Points system. And my homemade pizza, which is 7 points a slice, was even worked into that two weeks! If I get a craving for something sweet I pacify it with a piece of bread and a little bit of honey. Yum! Very filling too.
I have also been doing the 30 day shred with Jillian Michaels DVD, apparently she is on The Biggest Loser which I have not seen, but she is tough! I am doing the very easiest level and am pretty much sweating profusely and hurting by the end of the 20 minute workout! Oh but it is a good hurt!
Speaking of which I should go do my 20 minutes right now! I really do not want to return this DVD to the library! :)
Hoping to post some non-weight related news soon!
~Sunshine~
Monday, March 7, 2011
Weight Watchers
So last Monday I joined Weight Watchers.
When I was in college I was roughly 130 lbs most of the time. I took advantage of the Rec Center on campus, walked and ran with friends when the weather was nice, rode my bike frequently, and even played Wallyball on occasion. (Volleyball in a raquetball court....you can hit the ball off the walls and it makes things more interesting!)
Then came grad school.
I tried to exercise. I really did. But the amount of homework kept me indoors and awake into the wee hours. It was stressful. It made me hungry. I didn't have time to cook and did NOT eat well. I gained quite a bit, but thought, oh, after grad school I'll take care of it. I don't know exactly but I'd say I was roughly 160.
Then I got a full time job.
One where quite often I was working my full 40 hours at my work, and then taking work home and keeping busy with that until bed time. Ugh. No time to exercise, no time to cook and eat right. I gained a lot--I was about 190 or more most of that time. I even joined Curves for awhile but as work stress intensified I made my excuses not to go.
While working in retail after being laid off, I lost a bit. It was an overnight shift with lots of lifting and moving around and wow, my arm muscles were big! :)
On our wedding day, I weighed about 187. I don't like looking at myself in our wedding photos.
Even though I've been working on changing our diet to made-from-scratch, no-high-fructose-corn-syrup, more-fruits-and-veggies, and walking all the time, nothing seemed to be changing. A friend from church is doing Weight Watchers and told me all about it. I was impressed and DH and I talked over our budget--we are giving up our monthly date night/going-out-to eat fund so we can afford it.
My weigh-in weight last Monday (Feb 28) was 208.8. UGH. I never, ever, want to see that number again. If the Wii Fit can be trusted, I've already lost 7 pounds. I'll be weighing in next week Monday, so we'll see. They say you make the most progress the first two weeks.
What I love is that Weight Watchers doesn't focus on the big goals--it's the small ones. Your first goal is to lose 5% of your starting weight, then 10%. And you get a little reward for every 5 lbs you lose too. I've set some personal goals as well--to be well out of the 200 lb range by April 1st, and if I lose 40 lbs by Aug 2nd, my husband is spoiling me with spending money for a trip I'm taking with my grandma, mom, and aunts. They say a healthy weight for me is anywhere from 124-155. I'd like to be smack dab in the middle of that within 12-18 months!
So far I'm really inspired, and DH is as well. I'm publishing this out in cyberspace so I can be even more motivated.
Well, I'm off to walk to the library to pick up my Jillian Michaels DVD and Weight Watchers cookbooks on reserve! I will keep this blog updated on my progress!
~Sunshine~
When I was in college I was roughly 130 lbs most of the time. I took advantage of the Rec Center on campus, walked and ran with friends when the weather was nice, rode my bike frequently, and even played Wallyball on occasion. (Volleyball in a raquetball court....you can hit the ball off the walls and it makes things more interesting!)
Then came grad school.
I tried to exercise. I really did. But the amount of homework kept me indoors and awake into the wee hours. It was stressful. It made me hungry. I didn't have time to cook and did NOT eat well. I gained quite a bit, but thought, oh, after grad school I'll take care of it. I don't know exactly but I'd say I was roughly 160.
Then I got a full time job.
One where quite often I was working my full 40 hours at my work, and then taking work home and keeping busy with that until bed time. Ugh. No time to exercise, no time to cook and eat right. I gained a lot--I was about 190 or more most of that time. I even joined Curves for awhile but as work stress intensified I made my excuses not to go.
While working in retail after being laid off, I lost a bit. It was an overnight shift with lots of lifting and moving around and wow, my arm muscles were big! :)
On our wedding day, I weighed about 187. I don't like looking at myself in our wedding photos.
Even though I've been working on changing our diet to made-from-scratch, no-high-fructose-corn-syrup, more-fruits-and-veggies, and walking all the time, nothing seemed to be changing. A friend from church is doing Weight Watchers and told me all about it. I was impressed and DH and I talked over our budget--we are giving up our monthly date night/going-out-to eat fund so we can afford it.
My weigh-in weight last Monday (Feb 28) was 208.8. UGH. I never, ever, want to see that number again. If the Wii Fit can be trusted, I've already lost 7 pounds. I'll be weighing in next week Monday, so we'll see. They say you make the most progress the first two weeks.
What I love is that Weight Watchers doesn't focus on the big goals--it's the small ones. Your first goal is to lose 5% of your starting weight, then 10%. And you get a little reward for every 5 lbs you lose too. I've set some personal goals as well--to be well out of the 200 lb range by April 1st, and if I lose 40 lbs by Aug 2nd, my husband is spoiling me with spending money for a trip I'm taking with my grandma, mom, and aunts. They say a healthy weight for me is anywhere from 124-155. I'd like to be smack dab in the middle of that within 12-18 months!
So far I'm really inspired, and DH is as well. I'm publishing this out in cyberspace so I can be even more motivated.
Well, I'm off to walk to the library to pick up my Jillian Michaels DVD and Weight Watchers cookbooks on reserve! I will keep this blog updated on my progress!
~Sunshine~
Thursday, January 20, 2011
25 Day Praise Plan Valentine Marriage Challenge!
In this challenge, Courtney is encouraging us to make a conscious effort to "praise, encourage, inspire, admire, build up, thank and appreciate your husband" and to do that different ways each week.
Here's the first week's challenge/assignment: "Week 1 starts TODAY! Look for ways to praise your husband verbally.Praise him in front of the kids, friends, family, co-workers, on facebook, tweet it - get praise out anyway you can! Try to mention something noteworthy he has done - in his role as provider, father, husband, lover, or friend. If the thought of trying to come up with one terrifies you, then pray right now that God will give you new eyes to see your husband as God does. Then open your mouth and say something kind and uplifting to your husband today and tomorrow and the next day until Valentine's Day arrives."
I was listening to Doug Phillips' talk "A Wise Woman's Guide to Blessing Her Husband's Vision" a while back and he mentioned that when you are praised for your hospitality, as a wife, it is important to point to your husband when accepting those praises! I am so thankful that my husband works hard all week so I can be home and have enough time to prepare for guests. I am so thankful that he works hard to provide finances for groceries so we may provide hospitality...in abundance. I am so thankful that he has a vision for our home to be a place where hospitality is regularly shown! I have been working on singing his praises for this!!!
This week I am making a huge effort to watch my words. I am, unfortunately, quick to argue when DH and I do not see eye to eye. I am quick to point out things that bother me...and only things that bother me. Yesterday and today I have spent the day thinking of all the things I love about my husband, and what a difference it made when he came home last night! I didn't immediately run to him with my little problems and complaints, but instead spent time thanking him for being him! He seemed a little surprised--a pretty good indication that I do not do this enough!
I will be praying that I can keep up this positive attitude always--not just during this challenge. Thank you Lord, for giving me such a wonderful husband, who takes care of all my needs, loves me unconditionally, makes me laugh, encourages me in my walk of faith, and when he corrects me, does it with love. How blessed I am!
~Sunshine~
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