Non Scale Victories

 I am so excited to share that January has been a great start to healthier habits in store for 2024!!  While I am working to lose weight, I want to focus on non scale victories as much as, if not more, than what the scale says.  I truly want to work towards a healthier me!

Non scale victories for January: logging 10,0000 plus steps every day for 31 days straight, walking 74.9 miles of actual exercise, where I started my GPS for a period of time where I walked with a group or by myself, AND choosing to walk in 30 degree temps!!!  

I'm excited for a strong start and pray that it continues throughout the year.

Maggie's Fun Run

 I had a great time volunteering at Maggie's fun run today!!  It was great to get to be with her for this fun event!  We appreciate everyone who supported Maggie.  The school met their goal so Mrs. Williams took a pie to the face!

Chores...according to Maggie

 Why chores are important according to Maggie!  This totally made me smile!  The best line in all of it was and I quote "Sometimes we don't want to do it.  So we usually say NO!"  It's a hard life for these kids!!

She said "Momma Mrs. Smith didn't give us a choice if we thought chores weren't important cause I might have gone that direction if she did!"

The Bowl A Thon

 Last night Caroline and several of her friends joined McCall at her churches bowl a thon.  It was 11 PM to 6 AM.  The girls went last year and had a blast!  They couldn't wait to go back again this year!  Needless to say, Caroline went straight to bed when she got home!! :-)

The recorder!

 Every parents wish come true...the day the lovely recorder comes home from school.  We have heard "Hot Cross Buns" so many times in the 4 hours since she got home...she is improving every time she practices!  I am so proud of her!

FB Memories are killing us today!

 This sweet picture was in our FB memories from 9 years ago!  Tomi Jean bought it while in Chicago the November before this picture in January.  It was one of our absolute favorite outfits!  Seems like it was yesterday!!

Dead Battery

 Tonight we had Dad's Night at school.  When the last group of us walked out, my van wouldn't start.  I had jumper cables but needed someone else's vehicle to jump me off.  (Yes I have a jump pack but it was in Caroline's car and Caroline's jump pack that she got from Granny for Christmas was in her room!)  Kaitlyn was pretty sure she knew what she needed to do but we couldn't find the black post on Linsey's car.  Amy immediately FaceTimed her husband and the conversation between the two was hilarious!  But we did what Kaitlyn and I originally thought and it worked like a charm!  Good story, fun times!  Thankful for the folks I work with!!

2023 Blog books are HERE!!

This years New Years coupon for our blog book company was 50% off if created by January 7.  I was determined to meet that deadline and I'm so thankful I did!  I got both books for the price of one.  YEAH!!!!  Each girl gets her own copy.  We enjoy taking our time, looking through the memories of the last year!  I know I'm slack at updating in a timely manner but I'm so thankful to get the memories recorded.  I pray that they always appreciate these books and the memories we've made together!
 

Walking

 The last two days in SC have been brutal!!  The high yesterday was like 32.  I wasn't built for this craziness!  And I especially wasn't created to spend any extra time outside in these temps.  However, I've been working super hard since New Years Eve to hit 10,000 steps each day plus trying to log 500 miles before the end of the year.  So I layered, put on my NY fleece lined leggings, gloves and a hat and off I went.  Honestly once I got going, it wasn't too bad...so thankful I didn't let the weather effect my goals!!  I'm in it for the long haul and I'm so thankful for the progress I'm making!

Practicing Multiplication

 Maggie is really struggling to memories her multiplication tables.  Mrs. Smith sent home a different set of flashcards and a timer for Maggie to use to practice.  Thought new cards and the timer might make it exciting.  The first 8 or so cards Maggie was answering without even really thinking about it.  I was amazed at her progress!  I was so proud of her.  Then I held the card a little differently and she didn't know the answer...it had her stumped.  She said "can you hold it up, like just one at a time?"  When I did, I realized that little turkey lips could see the answer when I held it up like this.  I said "Maggie!"  She smiled and said "What?"  

Bless her!  Needless to say we still have a lot of work to do!

A beautiful creation!

 This afternoon I went for a walk and walked out to this beautiful sky!!  So gorgeous!  What an awesome God we serve who can create such a masterpiece!!

Caroline's first day with a 'friend'

 Last night Caroline sent Andy a really long text about a young boy asking her to the movies.  Her text was well thought out and she covered all the main topics.  So then I was brought into the conversation. He offered to come meet us before the movie, he offered for Andy to drive her and sit in the theatre if he felt he needed to.  We agreed for him to meet us and then they could go by themselves.  

He came in.  He removed his hat and shook both mine and Andy's names.  He sat down and looked Andy in the eyes when he was speaking.  Andy gave him a fatherly lecture about making wise decisions, especially when Caroline is in his company.  He agreed and off they went.  He opened our front door for her as well as her car door.  I was impressed.   I watched them drive off and wondered how did we get here so quickly...

Sam's with Granny

 The last two days Andy and I attended a marriage conference at our church.  Mom offered to come up today to take the girls to Sam's to break up their day a little.  No trip to Sam's would be complete without having lunch.  My how these days have changed...once upon a time they could share a slice of pizza...now everybody needs their own!  Maggie 'needed' a container of animal crackers and Caroline 'needed' some of her daily moisturizer.  Granny brought us ribs from Sam's from dinner!!  We are so thankful for all the little and big ways that she loves us!!

She's OUT!

 Maggie was finishing the last little bit of reading before bed.  I came to let her know her timer had gone off and found her like this...baby girl is exhausted!  Reading put her right to sleep!

Tornado Warning

 Today's weather has been a little rocky!  School was cancelled due to the inclement weather, especially because of the high winds and threat of tornadoes.  Long gone are the bad weather days being free days.  COVID taught schools that you can have a virtual day and therefore the day doesn't have to be made up.  As much as I don't like virtual days I am extremely thankful we don't have to loose spring break or extend the school year to make 180 days. 

While Maggie was working on her art lesson, she said "Hey mom!  Someone in my class told us on our Google meet that there was a chance of tornadoes today."  I said "Yes it is."  She immediately looked up and said "Like we have to hide in your bathrooom...why didn't you tell me I didn't even have time to pack a bag to keep me busy!"  

Sorry kid, if a torndo heads our way, your bag of entertainment is the least of my worries!

Fall Sports Awards Ceremony

The fall sports awards ceremony was postponed from December until today.  It was a great day!!  Caroline and her friends are doing big things in the sports arena at SF.  Caroline received the Leadership Award and the MVP.  The words that her coach spoke about her meant more than any award received.  SO very proud of her!

We are so thankful for Coach Jennifer and Coach Jan!  These ladies have invested so much in Caroline as a swimmer!!
 

Drivers Ed Driving Class

 Today Caroline took her 8 hour lecture driving class.  She and her sweet friend Josie took the class together, which made it a lot more exciting.  They had to wear impaired goggles and had to walk a straight line...then they had to drive a golf cart with the impaired goggles.  Now she has to complete 6 hours behind the wheel with her instructor...that will be closer to her license date. 

Ice Skating

Charissa took Caroline and Catherine ice skating a few days before Christmas!  They had a blast!! 

 

1:23 on 12-31-23

 So I have a thing with number sequence...I've always like 123...time, date, exits, etc.  So when it was brought to my attention in January of 2023 that the last day of the year would be 12-31-23 I was a little too excited!!  I knew it would be a fun day that I would want to remember.  I wanted to get a group text at 1:23 that day.  Sadly Maggie and I weren't with the group but they did get the selfie for me!! 

Meal Prep

One thing I'm learning is that being prepared for meals makes me a lot more successful!  So I found this amazing 2 point lunch and decided to meal prep for the week.  I make chicken burrito bowls with fresh cauliflower rice.  The cauliflower rice is so so good!  I'm so glad I prepped this meal because this is such a yummy and filling meal!  I'm already looking forward to lunch tomorrow!
 

Maggie's New Bike

 I found this really pretty bike on FB market.  It's exactly what I wanted...I was so excited!  When I got there, I realized that the bike was more of a pre teen bike and not an adult bike.  However, it was a family friend and I hated to say it wouldn't work.  SO I bought the bike and thought I would offer it to Maggie.  Well she immediately fell in love with it. She said it reminds her of a lemonade stand.  She loves the basket on the front and the rack on the back.  SO thankful for this purchase and so glad she likes it!

Healthier Habits in Store for 2024

 In the last year and a half, I gained all the weight I loss in 2020 plus about 5 pounds.  I didn't like myself in pictures but no matter what, I couldn't seem to loose the weight.  What was really hard, was looking at pictures from my dream trip to NYC and not liking what I saw. 

So I decided that this year would be my year to get in shape...to be healthy and take care of myself.  (Andy scare a few weeks before Christmas also helped me decided to make my health a priority.)  I looked at the weight watchers app and knew I have had a success with WW in the past.  A friend of mine decided to join me on this adventure.  So I joined and I'm excited to see how it goes!  I'm also joining a challenge with my friend Lia to walk 500 miles in 2024.  

Happy New Year!!

New Years Beach Trip 2023 was a huge success!!  We had a fabulous time!  The house had been recently renovated and was absolutely perfect! Shortly after we got there and got settled, I dragged my family to the beach...they weren't really excited because it was chilly but I insisted.  We didn't stay long but it was gorgeous!  I love any chance I get to enjoy the beach!

Lia and the girls got there around 6:00.  Abby and Stacey didn't arrive until almost 9:30 because Abby had to work.  We had a quiet night and went to bed pretty early.  We woke up Saturday and were pretty lazy.  The wind was blowing like crazy and it was pretty chilly so we weren't eager to get out to quickly.  We all enjoyed taking turns playing the Nintendo Switch.  We had a lazy afternoon but made it out onto the beach around 4:30.

Thankful to spend New Years with this awesome group!

Sunday we got up and headed to church.  It was about 45 minutes away, which was also close to the outlets.  So after church we hit the outlets.  The girls had so much fun!  They spent lots of money, which was all of there own...not sure the parents spent a penny... :-)  They shopped for 3 hours...we finally made it to lunch at McAlister's around 2:00.  It was the best lunch as we were ALL starving!!  

Once we got back to the house, everyone decided to chill in preparation for staying up for New Years Eve until midnight.  SO I decided to go for a walk.  I walked for about 15 minutes and when I turned around, I noticed large crowds on the beach.  The closer I got to my beach exit, I noticed more and more people on the beach, facing me.  I turned around to see what I was missing and saw this amazing sunset!!

The final sunset of 2023...it was beautiful!  Just like 2023.

And then I turned to finish my walk and saw this...closing 2023 and looking to 2024.

Found this fun snapshot of the girls!

Trying to entertain ourselves till midnight.

This trip we typically use paper plates to reduce the amount of time we spend in the kitchen...however, it was time to run the dishwasher as we had some big things to wash.  Andy took care of the dishes.  A little later Lia and I were in the kitchen for something and she noticed the dishwasher was leaking...we opened to find lots and lots of bubbles!!  I look under the sink and realize the dishwasher tabs I bought had not been used.  He came in and realized that he had used dish washing soap!!!!!!  We immediately started searching for help on YouTube.  We emptied everything out of the dishwasher and scooped as many of the bubbles as possible...then ran just hot water through it.  It helped!  Crisis adverted.

Everyone but Andy made it to midnight...here's to 2024!!

I got up early to watch the sunrise at 7:18.  I made it onto the beach about 6:55.  My dear sweet husband agreed to go with me.  We were freezing but I was so thankful to start 2024 on the beach watching the sunrise!  It was a cloudy morning so it wasn't completely clear but still beautiful!

Lia and Stacey surprised us by joining us on the beach.  They took this picture of us, I love it!!!

Andy, Stacey and Lia were cold and headed back to the house.  I stayed and sat, quietly by myself.  The sun felt so good!!

Then back to the house to pack up and head home...my least favorite part!  SO thankful to start the new year feeling relaxed and ready!