Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda...But I'm glad I didn't.

    I've often thought back to when I was in high school an how I didn't really try to stand out or do anything outstanding. I didn't play sports, I quit playing clarinet when it became too hard in 10th grade and my grades were no where near superior. I was the shy girl with a few friends getting into just enough mischief to stay to stay out of big trouble.
    In hind sight, a little more determination and I could have been that girl playing clarinet, getting scholarships of some kind and awards for something. But 4-8 years ago I had no idea who I was. God knew who I was though and he was slowly planting those seeds for my future.
    Lots of mistakes and a couple giant regrets later, here I am forgiven, wiped clean, clean slate, REBORN, new beginning!!
    Everyday I am being blessed by the littlest things that'll make me so happy. In the 3 years since graduating high school I have accomplished so many more things, be it giant or teeny tiny, than I ever did in the 4 years of high school. I can't go on enough about the opportunities that I've been given and how it's shaped me as a person over the last couple years.
    Last semester at school, I tried my best and was so surprised to get straight A's and make the Dean's List. In high school and college for photography I never got straight A's. While working at Home Depot I've tried my hardest to get used to the job and do my best and that hard work paid off and I got a little badge award at the store meeting. It's very small but let's me know that I am doing the right things in this life that I've been given.
    This isn't a post to boast about my many achievements. I was just told by a true friend that if you work hard and your heart is in the right place God will bless you tremendously.
    So if you choose to see everyday as a gift, every opportunity as a chance to learn and grow, try your hardest at everything you do and always be ready to lend a helping hand to anyone in need. God is always watching and He will bless your positivity and kindness.
    Work hard and count your blessings!
#BeKind
#StayHappy

Juice on!

    Last week was day three of our 10 day juice fast that we changed a little bit and then we changed it a little more. Today would have been day 10 except we decided to change it to seven days of 100% veggies and fruits. We made this decision because there were three of us doing it and one was leaving on day 8 to volunteer at church camp for a week and the other one had already had foods other than fruits and veggies so I would have been the only one at home doing it. Plus it was getting harder and harder to stay motivated.
    The first four days we saw so mush weight loss that we got too excited and sort of treated ourselves with more grilled veggies rather than juicing. Then the next day we saw weight gain and got discouraged and by day 6 we were just so ready to have real food back. Our motivation was gone and we knew we had messed up somewhere in Joe Cross' reboot. Of course we knew we weren't 100% juicing and when we were juicing more is when we saw the results.
    About day four I weighed in at 195 and now a week later and 3 days after not eating 100% veggies and fruits I am 200 again.
    So juicing works for getting all the toxins out and losing weight at a fast rate but if you aren't changing your exercise routine along with it then once you stop you will gain some or all of it right back. Exercising is very important. Eating nothing but fruits and vegetables for a week will change your appetite, making you want those healthy options more often. Now that the seven days are over I still find myself wanting an apple or a salad and turning my nose up at fast food and greasy things that are bad for you.
    All in all this wasn't a fail. We didn't get quite the results we were looking for but it did change my perspective towards food forever. I will continue to juice as much as possible and eat healthy. I've been given this one body and this one life, it's about time I start taking care of it from the inside out and I hope you all will do the same!
Juice on!
#StayHappy

We be juicin'

    Well it's not Monday but I've been working on my post since Sunday.
    
    As you should know by reading my first few posts, I used to weigh 300 pounds. For a long while when I first started losing weight my long term goal was 199.9 pounds. I just wanted to be under 200! Well yesterday I reached that goal! I had been stuck at about 212 for a long time and then one day I was so excited to be 209. Then last week I got sick with bronchitis and was in bed for days and lost another 5 pounds. So all of a sudden I was down to 204. It happened so fast and I didn't really look or feel any different than when I was 212.
    Now that I've moved into a new house and new surroundings, I feel motivated once again to get out and be myself and try new things. We watched a documentary called Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead.
    The man, Joe Cross, comes to America from Australia with a skin disease and over weight. He sets a plan to do nothing but drink fresh fruit and vegetable juice for 60 days in the land of fast food. The first 30 days he sticks close to New York City and the last 30 he travels the states with his juicer hooked to a battery in his rental car, sharing his story and juice with everyone he meets along the way.
    Juicing the food makes it so you are able to intake more at a faster rate so it shocks your system with so many nutrients that it can't help but flush out your system of all the toxins and force you to lose weight at a faster rate and cleanses you from the inside out. 4 ounces of veggies will make you full but 4 ounces of juice takes way more fruits and veggies to make and won't make you as full. So you drink more than 60 ounces a day and your body will go into a whirlwind cleanse.
    Joe Cross lost a tremendous amount of weight in a very healthy way and he was also able to stop taking the daily prescribed medicine for his skin disease.
    We were very inspired by this documentary and lots of research was done about how to juice. So a juicer was bought and a garden supply of fruits and vegetables and we are now on day 3 of a 10 day juice fast. We have modified our fast. We are still 100% fruits, vegetables and water but we aren't 100% juicing. The juicing is interesting but we are getting the hang of it. Eating nothing but fruits and veggies has been hard but it has also gotten easier since we've gotten it in our heads that we need to make healthier choices and the water is nothing for me since I've already been drinking nothing but water for years.
    We've also already seen results on day 2 with weight loss! Which brings me back to my goal of 199.9. Sunday June 9th we weighed in for the juice fast and I was 204.6 and on Tuesday June 10th I was 199.8. So I've reached my goal and can finally say I used to be 100 pounds heavier! But I am not stopping here! 100% fruits and vegetables is obviously working along with exercise of course so I will update you again in a week when the juice fast is over! My new goal is 160 and I will be a new person!
    Hopefully this will inspire someone to try this because now that I'm trying it it's kind of like duh why didn't I think of that?! It can be hard seeing all of these commercials of food and all the temptation everywhere you look but it gets easier! So see you with another progress report next week!

Our first official juice. Called The Mean Green. Renamed The Incredible Hulk.

  Be inspired!
  Change your life!
#StayHappy

Don't judge a book by it's cover...

    When you're a new Christian like me and still learning about everything, you look at people and wonder if they've let Jesus  into their heart or not. I also catch myself judging whether someone is a Christian by their appearance, their friends and how they act overall. It's just as wrong as plain judging someone.
    Hot Chelle Rae has  been  my favorite band  since right before they were big and famous. Ian Keaggy is a guitarist for the band and I have always said (jokingly of course) that he is my husband. I've seen them twice in concert. Once in Columbus, Ohio where I saw Ian walking down the street and screamed like a little school girl, I tweeted him saying sorry and he retweeted me saying It's all good ;) I also saw them at Universal Studios Orlando when I worked at Disney. They'll probably always be my favorite because I have their autographs and I love their music.
    Now back to wrongly judging people. Ian, and the rest of HCR for that matter, because of their music, lifestyle, and persona on social media I would have never tagged any of them as Christians and I was wrong and I am sorry for wrongly judging someone. Even though I don't know them in real life, it still counts. Now it's not impossible to change! Maybe all of them aren't Christians but I am so happy (as an avid fan) to see that Ian Keaggy is a Christian and putting it out for the world to see. He's a Christian with a heavy rocker image.
    I was home in bed sick all weekend with bronchitis and not only did Ian's tweet prove he was a Christian but it also meant he felt pretty much like  me this weekend.
    So don't judge a person by their  rocker shell. Especially if they're a celebrity you don't know in real life. =] But honestly everyone has a story and then they have their story of being reborn. Their appearance may not match both stories. Don't judge, just be a friend.

#StayHappy