Amos 3:8-10

About 3 weeks ago, I started attending church. With each visit, God touched my soul, and during the 2nd service, He laid it on my heart to tithe to the church I'd been attending.

Over the past 7 years, I had attended church every once in awhile, and tithed every once in awhile during those attendence once in awhiles (does that make sense?) Even though I was far from what you'd call faithful, each time, God blessed my meager effort.

So when He asked me to be faithful and tithe now, I did. The first time was easy. And, I say "easy" very lightly. While the money could definitley be used for bills and what-not, it was in my budget, and do-able. I tithed the 10% as per The Instructions, but when He asked me to go above that, I politely declined, basically telling Him I trusted Him, but not that much.
After I got home from that Sunday's service, I felt convicted. He couldn't bless me if I didn't fully trust Him.
So the next week (this past Sunday) I did as He asked, wondering how He was going to bless this trust. I had all of His options outlined in my head, and absolutely none of them seemed feasible long-term (long-term is applicable here, because I intend to keep tithing)

Sooooo, today....In addition to finding out that I got the position I had applied for within my company a few weeks ago, He also blessed me in another way that I am not at liberty to share, but it is definitly outside the box I had placed all of His options in. The funny thing is, I knew it would be outside this box, but I was still surprised when He did it.

This week has been a rollercoster, full of ups and downs, and proof of His faithfulness is exactly what I needed.

The Winds of Change Are A-Blowin'....

You know, They say change is good. I've had a change in my life recently that deep in my heart I know was needed, and is for the good, but knowing something in your head is nothing when trying to accept it with your heart.

6 months from now, I know I will look back and wonder what took so long for this to happen, and may even feel happy. In the meantime, I will use this experience and all that led up to it to make my life a better place.

On the bright side, I've lost 7lbs, and now weigh in at 219. I do not intend to see the other side of 220 again.

Tony is CRAZY

Ok, so, since starting this blog more than a month ago, I have lost 4 pounds. Unfortunately,there was a holiday in that month (which equaled a three-day weekend, which equaled a cookout/lots of eating), and I gained 5.5 pounds.

But, one of my brothers gave me the p90x dvd set and I am starting a new routine.

In case you don't know, p90x is a 90-day routine, in which you work out an hour a day for 6 days a week, with one DVD for each day/routine. Just so you know, walking on a treadmill for half an hour a day, 3-4 days a week in no way prepares you for Crazy Tony (Horton). I was stuck on disc 1 for 3 days. Couldn't get through the entire disc.

Ok...truth be known...I still haven't completed the routine on the first disc. But, now that I know what to expect, I am hoping to get through that first disc this week.

Wish me luck! (Tony really IS crazy)

The Latest

So, finding time to actually sit down and write is not as easy as I thought it would be. This should be my 10th or 11th post, but it's only my 5th. And the first 4 were all on the same day.

So, my latest realization is that it's more fun to get fat than it is to get skinny, but it's much more rewarding to see the numbers on the scales get smaller than to see them get bigger.

The Weight Does *Not* Simply Drop Off

When I became pregnant in 2005, I was already over-weight. I am 5'3, and I weighed 190lbs. I held a job as a Front Desk clerk at a hotel, and the extent of my activity there was walking from the employee area to the front desk area. On top of that, I had poor eating habits; vegetables very rarely found their way onto my plate (unless you count French fries from Sonic as a vegetable. In that case, I had vegetables all the time).

Being pregnant is exhausting. Well, for me, anyway. I had to be at work at 7am, and got off at 3:30. I'd come home, take a nap, and get up around 5pm when my husband came home from work. Neither of us would feel like cooking, so we'd go get fast food. We practically owned stock in Taco Bell. Throughout it all, I gained 67lbs. My doctor suggested I was gaining too much weight, and doing it too quickly. She very helpfully suggested I take walks, and even dared to suggest I add vegetables that were not deep fried to my diet. All along, I knew she was right. These eating habits could not be remotely good for me, and probably weren't too good for the baby, either. But, even though I'd neglected to use the on-site fitness center at work, I was convinced being a mom would change me, and I'd work out after the baby was here, and the weight would melt off with no problem.

Now, three years later (and nine months, if you wanna be technical and count the time I was pregnant), I am still over-weight, tipping the scales at (deep breath)....224.

But the winds of change are a-blowin'! I've started a low-calorie diet, incorporating raw veggies, fruits instead of chocolate, and even working out. My current job offers a membership to two gyms in the area. I've chosen the one closeest to my house, and actually work out. 224 is 5lbs lower than this time last week. It's not much, but it's very motivating. I have more energy, and the desire to eat correctly is influencing my husband.

So, my journey, with the ups and downs, will be chronicled here. If you have tips, ideas, suggestions- lay 'em on me! I need all the help I can get!

Bits and Pieces

"I love you Mommy" is one of my favorite phrases...I have a very strong dislike for the color orange...Getting out of debt is a very liberating feeling...I am a cat person...I look forward to the day I can buy clothes in a size that is three sizes smaller than what I currently wear...I lost 5 pounds in four days, and wonder if trying to lose ten in the next week is too much...I am addicted to www.OneSentence.org ...I have a very dry sense of humor...I long to take my daughter to the ocean...I am surprisingly flexible...I would love to become a foster parent

271 Things To Do Before I Die

271 is a random number, but there's enough "to-do-s" out there to add to my list. This is a Blog In Progress, and will be up-dated and changed as necessary.

When I've completed an item, I'll mark it as "Done" and put the date next to it.

So, here's my list (so far), in a random, not-specific order:

1. Visit the Eiffel Tower
2. Buy an espresso maker
3. Have a honeymoon
4. Become a stay-at-home mom
5. Own our very own home
6. Plant a garden, and keep up with it - -Spring '09
7. Own my own business
8. Own a car, free and clear
9. Get a pedicure
10. Go on a cruise
11. Get a breast reduction
12. Order room service
13. Lose 80 pounds- - 7/10/09: Lose 65 pounds
14. Find a Cause, and get involved
15. Go to an OU Men's Basketball game (preferably a home game)
16. See the Grand Canyon
17. Go through the toys and clothes stored in closets, and donate the stuff we will never use again
18. Read the entire Anne of Green Gables series with my daughter
19. Visit all the Civil War battlefields
20. Get out of debt
21. Own OU Football season tickets
22. Take Rey to the ocean
    

Getting Started

The pressure to be interesting and amusing is killing me!