New Beginnings and Inspiration

A couple weeks ago I officially became the owner of an iPhone! I know I'm pretty late on the bandwagon, but happy I finally made it! Before this, I had an android phone that was always giving me problems and a horrible service plan to go with it! I'm now saving money and enjoying this new technology.

One of the first apps I got was the My Fitness Pal App. In short, It's a calorie tracker that helps people make goals and achieve them. I have been using Spark People for years and lost over 50 lbs with it. So when I got the iPhone I immediately went to download their app, only to find that they wanted $3.99 for it! Call me cheap but why charge so much when there are so many apps out there that do the same thing for free!?

Anyways, I heard so many great things about My Fitness Pal, so I thought I'd give it a try. It's super easy to use and has tons of food and workouts to choose from. I'm in love! :)

I've been using it for over a week now and I'm already feeling better. I feel like it's holding me accountable. If I go over in calories or nutrients, I get an ugly red negative number. I'm an over-achiever, so negative reds are not an option! :)

Source:reasonstobefit.tumblr.com via Kim on Pinterest

 

My goal has been to walk at least 10 minutes a day at a very slow pace. I was doing fine until a few days ago. I felt sore on my walk but tried to push through. Well after that I was super sore and couch ridden for most of the day. I have good days and bad days. Days like that will not stop me. It's just my body reminding me to take it easy.

Source: sparkpeople.com via Kim on Pinterest

 

I really hope I can get in shape for this surgery. I've exhausted all my options and living with this pain for the rest of my life is not an option. It's a slow moving process but I have my eye on the prize. Living a healthy, pain free life is all I want. Once I get treated for the cause of my pain, I will dedicate the rest of my life to being the strongest and healthiest version of me. I can never come back to this. I deserve better for myself.

Source: thisblogisforwomen.com via Kim on Pinterest

 

New Year

For the first post of the year I wanted to keep it light. I have chosen not to make resolutions for the year simply because my life is so up in the air right now that I would rather not deal with the disappointment of not achieving them.

Instead, I have one thing on my mind for 2013 and that's to get HEALTHY! I've been suffering from chronic back pain for over a year now and it has kept me from doing a lot! I know that once I can get healthy and get this pain out of my life this year will be great!

I'm already feeling better about things. It's as if there was a mental shift and I'm seeing things differently. I know this year will be a struggle. It will have it's ups and downs. But I will get through it. It's always darkest before the dawn. Can't wait to see the light!

It's Ok

 

I am so happy to be able to finally take advantage of my first link-up! I've been following Neely for a little while and saw she hosted this great link-up! I'm still pretty new at this and I hope I'm doing it right. A lot has been going on with me and I'm finding that my blog and the support I get from it is so wonderful I should be sharing a lot more! The husband got Assassins Creed III for Christmas so that gives me lots of extra time on our computer now! Lol.

 

Without further interruption, please enjoy my first "It's Ok Thursdays"!

 

It's Ok...

 

To not want the Christmas season to end and have to put away all my pretty decorations. :(

 

To be scared of the possibility of a very complex back surgery in my future. Everyone is telling me to go ahead with it, but the thought of being cut open and spending a few nights in the hospital scares me.

 

To be sad that my Mom and Sister couldn't make it for Christmas this year. I miss both of them so much! Hoping Mom will make it out here in a couple of weeks!

 

That I've been sleeping so much lately. The holidays have kept me pretty active which takes it's toll on me physically. I sleep because my body needs to heal and the meds keep me tired!

 

To not be sure of anything any more. The future and my plans are so up in the air these days. I need to be patient and know that things will fall into place when the time is right.

 

To have my phone full of pictures of this little guy. He makes me so happy! I was blessed with the best fur baby in the world!

 

My cuddle buddy, Rocky <3

 

 



Merry Christmas!

Just dropping in to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!

 

Source: designspiration.net via Kim on Pinterest

 

I will be enjoying Christmas Eve with my in-laws and Christmas Day with both my family and in-laws! I love that we all come together during the holidays!

 

My mom and my sister will be absent this year and sorely missed. I'm reminded that although they aren't here to celebrate this joyous day, they are still very present in my life and I am so grateful to call them family.

 

Merry Christmas!

 

From Kim, Wan and Rocky <3

 

 

 

Home for the Holidays

It seems like so long since my last post! Lot's going on with Christmas just around the corner. Last week I got the news that my mom would not be joining us for Christmas. The tickets are insanely expensive this time of year and it just doesn't make sense to come now. Hopefully next month. I've accepted it, but not after crying like a baby because I wouldn't be with my mom for the first time in my life on Christmas. Yes, I am a cry baby.

The good news is that I got a brand new "fake" tree this year and I love it so much more than our last one! My mom also sent me my stocking and I got my husband and "fur baby" Rocky stockings too! It's time to start our own traditions and I am so excited to see how much the holiday grows in our home. :)

(excuse the fuzzy phone pictures)

 

With all the warm and fuzzies that the holidays bring I was super excited when I found out my custom order from DefineBliss is on it's way! Back in October I entered a giveaway over at Katie's Camo-Colored Chaos and I won! I began emailing with Jessica at DefineBliss and she came up with the most beautiful custom order for our family! I should have it this weekend and I can't wait! This was my first time ordering something from Etsy and Jessica made the process so smooth and effortless. I got my husband in on it and we agreed on the font, color, and placement of everything! I definitely recommend her for all your custom needs! She's awesome!

 

This baby will be hanging right above our TV in the center of our little home. :)

 

 

After a little over a year in this tiny apartment of ours, it's really starting to feel like a home. It's custom pieces like this along with lots of love and memories. :)

 

 

I hope you all have a great weekend!



Missing

Now that the holiday season is in full swing I can't help but feel like somethings missing, or rather someone. My mom is truly my best friend. She is always there when I need her and even thousands of miles away she seems to always make me feel better.

Last year my mom made a choice to move back to her hometown in Arkansas to be with her high school sweetheart. At first I did not support her decision. How could she just leave her kids like that? We still need her! It took some time for me to calm down and realize that she was doing something for herself for the first time in a long time. I needed to support her.

This was the second time without my mom here for Thanksgiving in my whole life. It still has not quite sunk in that she's really not here. She's thousands of miles away in a different time zone. But, she's with her now husband, on a beautiful land with chickens and fishing everyday. She's living the retired life with her love and I can't help but smile. She's happy.

Some days I miss her being here so much it hurts. I miss her hugs and our shopping days. I miss her coming over to my house and re-organizing everything! I miss how she smells. I know to some of my readers this may all seem childish. But when it comes to my Mama, I'm okay with being a 27 year old baby. I deal with pain everyday, some days are better than others but the days where I can't get out of bed are the days I just wish she was here to take care of me.

Last year while my husband was gone training. I spent almost every weekend with my mom. She helped me move twice, held my hand when I had to deal with the "day before" of my first colonoscopy, took me to all my hospital visits, and was there for me when my husband couldn't be there on my birthday or those days that I missed him so much I couldn't function. She was there. Always.

I know that she's still here. Just not physically here. Sometimes that physical time with a person means so much more. One thing to look forward to is having her here around Christmas time. She's still not sure if she can be here Christmas Day, but just having her here means the world to me.

This is all part of growing up I guess. People move away and go in different directions. One thing I'm hoping for in the next year or so is that wherever my husband and I end up living, that it's close to my Mom. She loves to drive and travel and I know the closer we are the more I'll be able to see her. Crossing my fingers and praying that it all comes together.

For now I'll just be counting down the days until I see her again. Waiting for the day to get a hug from my Mama. <3

What I've Been Up To

It's been a little while since my last post. I thought I would just give a quick update on what I've been up to lately.

We celebrated Halloween by staying home. I know, it was not ideal but I made the best of it. I had a doctor's appointment that day and got prescribed new medication. I felt so much better after taking it and was able to do my makeup and feel pretty for the night. My husband went to work out with a friend and came home too late to do anything. So here's a little glimpse of my "devilish" looks that night:

 

I originally took this picture to send to my husband and later realized it was the only one I took of that night! Muah!

 

After eating my little brother-in-law's candy :), we settled back into normal life. Next up was the Presidential Election! My husband and I are usually completely opposite on our political views but this Election was honestly very difficult for me. I chose not to share my candidate with anyone. It's my choice and I don't really feel like getting into debates with people who have strong opinions. It gets pretty nasty this time of year. So we headed to the polling place on November 6th and I could honestly feel a weight lift off my shoulders when I was done. I was so happy it was all over! Lol. Here are some pics I took of that day.

 



Now onto recent events. Yesterday was Thanksgiving. My Mom lives in Arkansas and my sister lives in Colorado so they both decided to celebrate the holiday in Colorado. My two little brothers flew out there to spend the holiday with them. It was just left to my Dad and I to make sure we had a great holiday. My husband made his absolutely delicious orange glazed ham and my in-laws chose to spend the holiday at my Dad's too. It was so nice for my Dad to feel like he still had family to cook for. I am so blessed that my in-laws and family get a long so well.

With my injury, it's been very hard to help as much as I would like to. It's so painful to be in the kitchen for long periods of time. Since my Mom and Sister were not in town this year, I took on making my Mom's wonderful homemade cranberry sauce. I know she would've been proud :). I also made the family's favorite holiday cookie, Pumpkin Glazed Cookies. It was so hard to get through it without being in pain but I made it through. Thanksgiving morning I also made French's Green Bean Casserole. As exhausting and painful as it was, I was so happy that I was able to contribute something to our family holiday. It gives me confidence to know that once my husband and I move away from family that I can carry on these recipes in my own home.

This year's Thanksgiving carried so much meaning for me. I have never asked for so much help for just every day things as I have this year. I truly could not have made it through this year without my loving husband and wonderful parents. This was my Facebook status from last night:

 

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! <3