Hot yoga?!?!

I love being healthy but I don't LOVE to workout and I don't LOVE to eat healthy...confession of the day, there you have it. I deep down wish I could watch trashy TV all day while eating junk and still have a strong body and healthy lifestyle.

I tried out a few classes when we lived in GA and found that I really like the class atmosphere and the accountability that comes with it. I wasn't sure what kind of classes I would find in IL and I didn't know how the childcare situation would work without the family being so close.  

A few weeks ago there was a great Groupon for a year memberhip to the Hot Yoga studio here in town, 73% off! So J offered it up for Mother's Day/ our Anniversary. I'll be honest, again, that I was terrified of trying Hot Yoga so I sat on the groupon for a week or so gaining the courage to cash it in.

But today I tried HOT YOGA and I LOVED it!! I haven't loved a class or workout like this since ballet boot camp! I am a reasearcher by nature and so I looked on Pinterest, Facebook, Google for advise or anything on what to expect. Everything I read said to hydrate a ton, eat small meals and nothing within 2 hours of the workout and to wear as little as you feel comfortable wearing. So I drank, a ton. I ate small meals and stopped at 3 and wore a light tank and yoga shorts. While some we're wearing MUCH less that's as little as I could handle or felt was appropriate! 

So now that I have had my first class and had some time to come off the "high" of the workout I have a few observations:

1. It is hot. I am from the south I was raised in 98*\80% humidity but I have never pushed my body that way in that kind of heat. I kept thinking, man it is really hot in here and somehow I made it through. 

2. It is crucial to SIP water during the workout not chug but sip.

3. My laundry will increase....those are some sweaty clothes!!

4. I felt amazing after and coconut water was the best thing I have ever tasted in that moment. Plus a Rehydrate of course! (Advocare never disappoints) 

5. I actually love that there is no talking in the studio. After being with a 3 year old all day and then a 6 year old after school, the silence was amazing.

So that was first experience and I am super excited to get back in there! I highly recommend it, but at the same time know your limits and workout accordingly- it is hot, it is intense but it was really fun!

Lil C goes to the movies and mommy goes to a meeting

It is no secret that I LOVE Chick-Fil-A. The reasons are far to many to list but I really love the Winder CFA. They host free events almost weekly...and yes I buy food so the event is not completely free but I would eat there once a week anyway :)

 

Thursday (6/13/13) the events team hosted a mommy and me morning. The kids made some crafts for Father's Day.

 

 They really do love each other...

 Charlotte loves the cow! Here she is saying..."Hi cow, hi cow, hi cow"

 

 

After the crafts, Kelsey and I thought it would be super fun to take 5 kids 5 and under to the movies! But seriously our local movie theater has a summer kids series and I thought it would be a great test run for Charlotte at a movie. She actually fell asleep! So it was pretty easy :) 

 

 

Later Thursday night I attended a business opportunity meeting in Monroe with my AdvoCare team. I was surprise asked to share how I am building my 4G business and starting to grow a full time business. I hate surprises like that but with AdvoCare there is no need to rehearse my "story", it comes natural and freely because it true and real life. I don't feel like I need to add fluff because the product results and business results tell themselves.

Park fail, winning mail-NO EXCUSES

Yesterday I mentioned I was going to try out a park side bible study. We went and I tried to listen but Lil C is in the stage where she wants to play at the park but she still needs my help and she was not about to let me listen and then play. So I would take her to the swings and then listen and repeat for the 2 hours. Unfortunately I think I will have to stick to bible studies that provide childcare until she can play independently in that type of setting.

I was kind of discouraged but then I checked the mail! It was a great mail day!!

For our anniversary J bought me a Birch Box subscription. I love it!! I'm not sure which I love more the cool samples or getting a box monthly giving me something to look forward. My favorite sample this month was the nail polish (which I have become obsessed with lately). This picture doesn't give the nail polish color any justice. It's a neon peach...excited to try it out soon :)

I also got the books I ordered YESTERDAY!! I love amazon prime!!

Lil C has some developmental delays. She caught up mostly in gross motor but is still catching up in the speech and communication department. She is super super smart and always figures out a way to get what she wants or needs but that will not always carry her. She needs to learn to adjust to the world around so she can become more independent. I bought Raising A Sensory Smart Child to help me help her figure out this sensory overloaded world. After reading the first chapter I would recommend this book to anyone. We do live in a very fast world and it can become overwhelming to anyone but imagine that you are unable to communicate your feelings and needs? The world has moved on before you can get your thoughts out? How scary and frustrating that must be!

 

I also got my new bible study, Bad Girls of the Bible. So excited to get that started in the morning!

 

Before I go to bed I am catching up with my Advocare team and catching up on some excellent videos created by some of the greats and leaders in Advocare. The common theme tonight throughout the call and throughout the videos...NO EXCUSES. If you want something there is no excuse that should be able to stop you!! As I go to sleep I will be praying on this and thinking on this...what excuses are stopping me and what are those excuses stopping me from gaining and changing in my life?

Blogging woes, magicians and raw bars

My approach at blogging is not working! New approach- blog daily. What's on my mind that day, in that moment. Random maybe but it can't be any worse than how I blog now! I want to record our days for J and family to see and I want a record to look back on. I remember writing in a diary and how freeing that is, so why not treat my blog that way?

I've been feeling so bogged down with worry and a feeling of always waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak. The answer to overcoming that has always been right there but I wasn't ready to see it yet. Almost like holding on to the aching feeling was easier than facing why I was feeling that way. I wasn't ready to face that if I spent my life in the moment and not in constant planning of the next moment I could still have fun while not in complete control. So if I'm not in control who is? God. It is that simple. Pray, turn over the worry, give the Lord my fears, read the Word, wait for the moments. When the moments are scary and worrisome-pray for the strength. When the moments are amazing and blessed-praise Him.  "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matt. 6:33) I am setting my alarm to try and wake before the kids to seek Him first before the Spark, before the laundry, before my mind has a chance to slip into the type A place it often resides in. I'm certain things will change and I can become a better wife and mom.

 

 Today I started reading Faith Deployed and researching bible studies. I've decided to try Bad Girls of the Bible to add to the bible study J and I do together. While researching I was invited to a bible study in the park with other ladies and kids. Obviously a God thing! It starts tomorrow and I am so excited to see how it goes. When we were on post I was involved in PWOC (Protestant Women of the Chapel) and loved learning from other women in my place in life.

 

 

In other news- the local library is doing a Dig into Reading summer reading program. The kids are loving the special guest and the prizes for reading. Today's guest was a magician that read/danced/sang. The Cs loved him and Lil C actually paid attention the whole hour!  

 

 

 I grabbed a book for myself while we were there.  Z: A novel of Zelda Fitzgerald. Stay tuned to see what I thought of it:) It was compared to the Paris Wife which I loved so hopefully this book will not disappoint!

Another random piece of info...I have to eat before I work out...is that weird? Maybe it helps me get through or maybe I like to think I must work off those calories I just ate. Who knows but I do eat before I workout so I love to find the healthiest option. In February, AdvoCare introduced the Raw Bar and I read somewhere on group or page to add a smear of peanut butter to the top. What a clean protein full snack to fuel me for my workout! Which was fabulous today. I did ballet boot camp and man will I feel that in the morning!  

This picture makes it seem like there is a ton of pb- while I love my pb I promise there was not that much ;)

 

 

My kids on Advocare

 It is no secret that J and I love Advocare products and use them daily. After we saw the results and felt the difference in ourselves I started researching the products for our kids. They were on a multivitamin but it was an over the counter brand that had ingredients I wasn't familiar with and certainly did not have a scientific medical board backing it. It was also imprtant to me that we found something that could grow with them and that I trusted to be safe even if they continued to use during sports later in life. Since AC is tested with Informed Choice I knew they would be safe.

So what do we give the kids?
Clayton:
-Rehydrate/Spark mixture (not a full serving, less than half actually)
 

-Probiotic Boost (which is being reformulated) or Probiotic Restore
    The Probiotic Restore comes in a capsule so I break it open and mix with the Rehydrate/Spark

- Purple Champ
- Citrizinc
- V100

Charlotte:
- 1/2 of each chew: Citrizinc, Purple Champ, V100
-Rehydrate with Probiotic RESTORE

I also love to give the kids the snack bars as a portion controlled snack. I love to give them the Raw Bar with peanut butter spread on the top. Great option with high protein and all natural ingredients.

Catching the vision

The weekend of February 15-17 I travelled to Dallas/Ft Worth for AdvoCare Success School. What is Success School-for me it was a time to understand what I really had on my hands with people that were discovering that same. SS was a weekend to relax in a high energy environment with some amazing people. It was a weekend to re-evaluate why I chose to get involved in AdvoCare in the first place and where that decision can now take me.

Through out the weekend we went to several training sessions to learn more about the products, the business as a whole and how to share that properly with others.

Some highlights for me: Hearing President HW Bush speak, worshiping with Micheal W Smith, listening to several stories from people that were just like us and are now making more money and have more success than I can even begin to imagine having.

The theme for this year is "Catch the Vision". I can say that I caught the vision that AdvoCare has for the future but I also caught on to what I needed to do to intentionally be apart of that future.

 
This video is a recap of the weekend:
http://youtu.be/n5M0R-8XhZU

At the closing the whole arena erupted with confetti-pretty neat!

"A whole arena of like minded people with the same heart beat"-Sherrie Wright  

Jason Whiten-Tight End for Dallas Cowboys inviting us to his house for August Success School! I can't wait to be in the Dallas Cowboys Stadium in 6 months!!

Our Team after the Legacy Team Dinner- yummy!!

Drew Brees- National Endorser



Rachel, Danelle and I enjoyed the weekend together 

The one and only Micheal W Smith- how many companies allow for a church service and push for  the beliefs of a Christian community.

One of the exciting announcements at SS is always the release of the new products. The new products for this SS: The Raw Bar

A new Dairy-Free Meal Replacement Bar

And finally 3 new Spark flavors! But with a twist...the "buds" are supposed to decide which of the 3 flavors stays. I have tried all three and WATERMELON is by far the best!! If you would like to vote go to the AdvoCare Facebook page and place you vote.

I took this picture the morning I flew out. The first time in 5 years I have flown without children, flown to something for me not just to visit family but to get away from family. I sat reflecting on how peaceful I felt. J's job (deployment) was totally up in the air at that point and I should have been worrying about that but I wasn't. I was ready to work on me and figure out what my place and goals are for the next year.

 

If someone were to ask me if I thought going to SS was a worth it, I would say 100%.

 

If you want to be apart of this incredible company-let me know! I would love to take you to Dallas with me in August!!

2013 Goals and Expectations

2013 is going to be a big year for my family and a year with a lot of changes. I am looking forward 2013 though and the challenges ahead.

Jason will only be with us as a family until March and then he will be headed off to Hawaii to train followed up by a deployment to Afghanistan. We are going to miss him so much but these goals are going to make the time pass and make me a person wife, mom and Daughter in Christ ready to manage our family as a whole when we do finally come back together.

The kids and I are moving back "home" for the time Jason is gone. We found a fun cabin home between my mom and dad, as much as I hate the circumstances that are making these changes happen I am excited to be home for a little while.

So here are my goals:

1. Read one book a month. I am going to keep track of this on Goodreads. You can follow along with what I'm reading on the side bar. Goodreads has a challenge that helps you track your goal of a certain number of books read. I choose my goal to be 24 in 2012, 12 for pleasure and 12 Bible studies.

2. Maintain the weight range I am right now. I set a healthy range and I would like to stay within that range. And no I will not say what the range is :)

3. Finish Jason's Army Scrapbook.  I have been working on this for quite a while and would really like to finish it up this year!

4. Potty train Charlotte.

5. Bench press my weight. This was actually a challenge given by Jason but I think I can achieve it if I try.

6. Run a 10k. I don't like to run so this is huge! It is something Jason has wanted to do as a couple for a long time. I want to run a 10k with him when he comes home.

7.Make Silver Level Distributor with Advocare.

8.Constantly be in a study or devotional.  I can also track these on Goodreads.

9. 1 Art/craft project a month. In other words start actually doing what I pin on Pinterest.

10. Pay off my car.  We are firm believers in the Dave Ramsey plan of debt removal and being a cash family, We only have my car left and we will be debt free.

11. Get my tooth fixed. Weird goal I know. I had a root canal done a few months ago and the pain, experience was too much for me to back and have them do another on my other back tooth....pregnancy and poor health habits did a number on my molars! So now that I am going to be back home with my dentist from forever, I would like her to fix my teeth.

12. Cook and bake more. Again to utilize those Pinterest pins.

13. Host Christmas. I have lived in another state since we got married almost 6 years ago so I have never had the chance to host a big holiday. I would love to have my family over for Christmas since this will most likely be my only chance for a long time!

14. Take time for myself. Take a class. Go see a movie. Something that allows me time away from the babes.

15. Join a gym. I have always worked out at home but I would love to join a gym and maybe even get a personal trainer.

So there they are....I can't wait to revisit this post on January 1, 2014 and see where I am then.

Top 3 New Year's Resolutions-the worlds not mine

I looked up "Top 3 New Year's Resolutions" on Google and came to consensus that these are the top three things people resolve to change about themselves every year.

1. Lose weight/eat better/workout more etc.
2. Find a better job/make more money/save more etc
3.Spend more time with family/spouse/self

I totally get all these and at the beginning of 2012 I set these same goals for myself in one way or another. Due to life bringing some unexpected trials my goals changed but God kept these original goals in His plan for me.

You can read all about my first steps into Advocare here. As it says in that post we started or journey in May 2012. A journey I was neither looking for or expected to find and honestly didn't see the connection with my yearly 2012 goals until I started thinking about my 2013 plans and expectations (a new way I am saying goals and resolutions :)).

We have kept up with the Advocare lifestyle and that has obviously helped reach goal number 1, not just for myself but for my whole family. Since day 1 of our first 24 Day Challenge I have lost and maintained 20 lbs and went from a tight 8 jean to a loose size 4. I feel amazing!

This was me in May right before we started- my size 8 jeans too tight to sit down and the beginning of a double chin.

 

This was the latest picture of me (I'm always behind the camera). Size 4, no double chin!

 

 

 

On to number 2. Advocare has allowed me to increase our monthly income by several hundred dollars a month, and all through sharing and telling what I know and what I have seen. We were not looking for me to go back to work and we didn't need the money per say but the extra money has allowed us to save more than normal and enjoy some time as a family without the concern of money. Which brings me to the 3rd resolution.

 

Spending time with my children and my husband is a top priority for me. I was not giving my all to the kids or Jason because I was planning the next nap (for myself), I was grumpy and I loathed cooking (still not my favorite activity!). I am so grateful that I found the energy to stay ahead of the needs of my family and find joy in being healthy.

 

So while I am not a huge fan of the resolution idea I seemed to have stumbled upon a way to reach the top 3 goals of Americans... Advocare.

 

Advocare is not blind to these being the top resolutions in American either and that is why they have discounted, challenged and added to the 24 Day Challenge bundle starting January 1, 2013.

 

Here are some amazing new deals and products...

 

A workout DVD to add to the bundle to maximize the results the recommended and products are already going to give you.

 

No gym required-just you and 24 minutes!

 

A chance to win $1000- you must be a distributor (ask me how or go to my site). Check out www.CanYou24.com for contest rules and registration.

 

 

A discount on the 24 Day Challenge Bundle! January 1-15th!!!

 

And an answer to the "What do I do after the 24 day challenge?"- The new 24 Day Challenge and Beyond Bundle Includes: 24 Day Challenge (Trim) + 4 Boxes of Metabolic Nutrition System + 4 Boxes Meal Replacement Shakes + 4 Boxes Spark + 3 bottles of Catalyst + 1 Can You 24

DVD + 1 FREE bottle of Catalyst. 

WOW!!

What a great time to become a part of Advocare!

 

Our team is also hosting a team size challenge that you can take part in as well as the Transformation Challenge!!

 

I am so excited for all the people that are going to take advantage of these offers, make that investment in their health!! Let's do this!!!

 

 

 

 





 

Pumpkin pie spice MRS

This is the first recipe in my new "meal replacement shake" shake up series! I get bored of the same breakfast so I thought why not make share my crazy MRS combos with others!

Ingredients:
1 vanilla advocare meal replacement shake

1/4 tsp of pumpkin pie spice

Shake, add some ice and enjoy!

Here we go...24 days to a better us!

Right around the start of the new year Jason and I noticed a million post on Facebook referencing Advocare...seriously a million and we assumed it must be some sort of spam thing! We would get friends coming at us from all different places saying they had tried Advocare and we should too and that they are earning more than a full pay check sharing these products and we could too. But then we notices these same people were posting real photos of real changes and real excitement! These were people I looked up to for spiritual, health, and over all life advice and some since high school. So it really started wearing on my heart that I know these folks and they would not lie to us so what's the harm in listening to  what they have to say right?

Fast forward to almost bikini/short weather and I was still hanging on to those last few stubborn baby pounds and Jason was getting complacent in his weight loss/muscle gain, we needed that something to push us over the edge. On the other hand we were starting to feel the effects of the little ones getting older and therefore eating more and costing more. While we are not in debt and are not living paycheck to pay check right now we want to live debt free and comfortable forever. I don't want to take this in a personal finance direction but I felt it is necessary to say we didn't chose the Advocare route because we NEEDED money it all honesty the income from Advocare is a bonus to our lifestyle change!

About a month ago we took the jump into the Advocare lifestyle. We knew we wanted to try the products and we knew we wanted a discount (duh!!) so we consulted our great friends the Ezell's that we have known for almost 10 years and have been that little nudging voice behind us saying DO IT ALREADY! They talked us through all the relationships there are to have with Advocare and the different places we could start with the products...after maybe an hour we were sold! I can now say I the proud owner of my own distribution site, but we have lost some in this process as well...pounds and inches that is!!! (cheesy, sorry)

Jason and I completed the Trim Challenge Plus (we finished on June 15) and are super excited about the changes in our appearance but most excited about how awesome we feel. We are happier people. We have time and energy for each other at the end of the day. I have what it takes to be the mommy of a four year old and a one year old. Jason has a clear head to handle the challenges being a company commander in the Army presents and like I said we still have energy to spend on each other. Time in busy life is priceless!!

Here are my pictures: (click on the picture to see them better)

Total loss: 5 lbs and 6.75 inches

Jason's before and after pictures:(click on the picture to see them better)

Total loss: 13.5 lbs and 4.25 inches

 I really truly believe that there is something at Advocare for everyone...EVERYONE!! It isn't just about weight loss or body building or making money. While all of that can happen so can a life change and that is what it's all about right?