Exercise

I have decided to exercise. I wouldn't mind if I lose a few pounds in the process, but my main reason for doing it is to tone up some of those muscles that haven't been used much. More than anything I would love to get rid of that c-section flab. If I can tone up my abs, even just a little, I will be very pleased.

I have a number of friends doing the 30 Day Shred by Jillian Michaels, so I decided to join them. Everyday we text one another after we have completed our workout. This is a great accountability group. We are each accumulating stars on a chart for everyday that we workout. After we reach 30 stars we will reward ourselves with something. I'm not sure what that will be yet. Any ideas?

I have done 2 days so far and all I can say is "wow, it is really a workout!" My muscles are so sore. I can tell this program is doing what it promises to do. I am very excited about this and can't wait to update everyone on my progress.

Health Nut?

I know some of my friends and family think I am a crazy health nut. Yes, I have become more aware of the health of my family, especially what we are putting into our bodies. I am trying to be very careful to make the most educated decisions about our food choices, medications and supplements, household cleaners and anything else we might come into contact with. I believe that the most important thing I can do is make my home and the food within my home as healthy as possible.

The biggest change I have made is to try and eliminate High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) from our diets. This has proven to be a challenge. HFCS is in everything including soda, yogurt, ketchup, bread, crackers, fruit juices and many other things. There are so many studies out there that link HFCS to the rise in obesity and the rising numbers of people with diabetes. Just this week a new study came out that shows that HFCS contains mercury. Whether all these studies are true or not, I have decided to eliminate it from our diet. I try to purchase as many whole foods and unprocessed foods as possible. I have noticed that since I made this change I have lost about 7 lbs. Don't get me wrong. I am not a food Nazi. We still enjoy many unhealthy things on occasion.

I have also switched to all natural, organic cleaning products. We spend so much time in our home and I don't want my family to be exposed to toxins in our house. I have been using Shaklee for a couple years now and LOVE the products. I can't say enough great things about them. That is why I decided to sell them.

I will try and share a few of the simple healthy recipes that we have found and love. Please feel free to share any you may have.

Boys

I just wanted to share a new picture of the boys. I can't believe how big Truitt is getting. He is now walking and even a little running. He is starting to sign more and more. He amazes us at what he comprehends. He is a little cuddler too.

25 Things About Me

I have been tagged, by Sarah, to post 25 random things about me.

1. I hate clutter, but you would never know that by looking at my house. Apparently the rest of my family doesn't mind stuff and I just can't keep up after all of them.
2. I love to cook.
3. I went to Illinois for college and only lasted one semester before returning home.
4. I would choose to eat fruit over chocolate, most days.
5. I do not like coffee.
6. I am a warm weather person.
7. If it wasn't so expensive I would move to Maui.
8. I love watching HGTV and Food Network.
9. I can't cook unless my kitchen is clean.
10. I have one sister. She is 361 days younger than me.
11. I am very concerned about the health and well being of my family.
12. I love to listen to Hymns.
13. I could eat Mexican food multiple times a week.
14. Chris and I will be celebrating our 12th anniversary this summer.
15. I have always wanted to be a mommy.
16. I love to travel.
17. I wish I were better about keeping in touch with friends around the country.
18. My favorite book of the Bible is James.
19. I have deep dimples. Growing up my mom always told me that is where the angels kissed me.
20. I have just started understanding and enjoying football in the last couple of years.
21. I love finding a deal on just about anything.
22. I enjoy taking pictures, but wish I were better at it.
23. I am not a pet person.
24. My right earlobe is torn from having an earring torn out of my ear.
25. Someday I plan on finishing all of my scrapbook projects.

Now I tag Amie, Jenny, Penny and Kristen.

Ready to Read?

Keegan has been doing very well at school. He said on the very first day of school that he wanted to learn to read. He has been determined ever since. He already knew the phonetic sounds each letter made, so he was well on his way to reading. He can now sit down and read a very simple beginner book. He is also starting to write little stories. It is the cutest thing I have ever seen. He draws pictues and then labels them. He is working hard to sound out words, even if they aren't the correct spelling he has correctly spelled them using the phonetic sounds. For example....he would spell bird "burd" or he tried to do snow mobile the other day and it said "snu beo." I am so proud of him! He is growing up so fast!!!! I can't believe my 4 year old is ready to read.

My Goals for 2009

I'm not one to make New Years Resolutions, but I have set a few goals for myself this year. I like to set goals, but don't beat myself up if I don't attain them either. I am posting this so that I am putting a few of my goals into writing so that they are something my readers can keep me accountable for. Otherwise I know that it would be very easy to slack on them. Please feel free to ask me, occasionally, how they are going.

1) I am trying to live more frugally. I am searching for ways to cut back on our budget. I am always looking for great deals. I've started using coupons in hopes of saving a few dollars. I will also be making our bread instead of buying it from the store. I am loving the way the bread makes our house smell! Do you have any bread recipes you want to share with me? There are other ways I will be trying to save money, but I will try to share more later.

2) We are going to work really hard at creating a budget and staying on track. We have made so many budgets over the years, but that is as far as we get. We are terrible at sticking to them. I don't know why we even bother wasting our time creating them when we don't even look at them again. We are also toying around with the idea of going to a cash only system. It is so easy to spend money when we are using our debit card or credit cards. I think we will stop and think before handing over cash (at least that is the idea). We would really like to do a better job at paying off our debt and putting more into savings, retirement and saving for our children's educations.

There are more things that I would love to work on, but I know that I need to be realistic if I plan on doing any of them. Please hold me accountable to these things!

Beaming with Pride!

I am loving this stage with Truitt (most of the time). He is constantly learning new things. It is so much fun to watch his little personality blossom. I have been signing to him for many months now and have felt very discouraged. I think part of this was because Keegan caught on to signing when he was younger and it only took about a day before he was using sign language to converse with us. I was beginning to think that Truitt would never get it. Actually, I knew he was just being stubborn. He can sign, but usually chooses not to. He will occasionally sign more and all done. But this week has been encouraging. He has decided to finally give in and use a few signs. Earlier this week he signed milk and then today he signed please. I'm pretty sure he even tried to say the word please as he signed it :)

Frugal Living

My friend Amie has started a new website with great tips and info on frugal living. She is posting all kinds of useful information on saving money, using coupons, finding great deals. She just posted an amazing deal on Entertainment Books. You can get your entertainment book for only $2.25 (after rebates). You can find all the details here.

Happy Birthday Chris!

Today is Chris' birthday. He is the best husband I could ask for. I love to watch him interact with our boys. He loves them so much and it is very evident. Chris works hard to support us and we are very thankful for that! I love his sense of humor, his amazing imagination, his love of God and dedication to his family. Thank you for all you do for us Chris! We love you! Enjoy your special day!!!!

Catch Up Time

I can't believe it has been so long since I last posted! So much has happened there is no way I can write about it all.

First, we had a great Christmas! We had a wonderful time celebrating the Savior's birth. We were so spoiled (as usual). It was so much fun to watch the boy truly enjoy this special time of year. The best part was knowing that Keegan really understands the true meaning of Christmas.

Next we celebrated Truitt's 1st Birthday! I can't believe a year has passed since he entered this world. Wow! Everything just goes much faster with a second child. He is a happy boy that loves to be around people. His cute smile and big dimples brighten my day. He is feisty, opinionated, cuddly and sweet. The week of Christmas he took his first steps. He can stand for long periods of time and walk (when he wants to). Before long he will be cruising everywhere all the time.

I also missed my blogiversary. It has been more than a year since Chris created this blog while we were in the hospital, after giving birth to Truitt. I haven't updated the blog as often as I wanted to, but I will try to do better this year.

We were able to get away with Chris' family (thanks to his parents) for a few days around new years. They rented an amazing house for us to stay in. The kids had so much fun feeding the goats, sheep and pony. They also enjoyed jumping on the trampoline. It was nice to get away from all the normal pressures of life and just relax and enjoy some time away.

Currently, Chris and his brother are under a huge amount of stress. They are working night and day to finish their novel. They missed the Dec. 1st deadline the publisher had for them, but thankfully they are being very gracious and extended the deadline to the end of Jan. Please pray that they would finish this novel on time. We can't wait for it to be done so that he isn't working non stop. I have read the first part of the book and I am amazed at how good it is! Not just because he is my husband, but because it is really good. I kept finding myself saying "Wow, I can't believe how good this is and my husband wrote it!" Now I need to find time to read the first book.