It is Just a Matter of Time

Another great day here in New Boston, TX!  I slept A LOT!  Laughed, talked, and probably ate too much.

I started the day with a bit of a headache. ..so resting was nice!

Each time we visit here...we have game night on Sat.  Tonight was no different! 

We played a couple of games...including charades!!  HILARIOUS! 

So much fun with a great group of teenagers with us grown-ups sprinkled in!!

Oh...and since this weekend included some great football...If you missed the end of the Alabama and Auburn game...find it and WATCH it...one of the greatest final plays in football EVER!

So in regards to defluffing...not so much today...but back in the saddle tomorrow!

I know my Journey is a little sidetracked AND as I have said...it is WAY too important to give up on...SO I will Forge On...I will take each day at face value...trusting fully in the value that each day brings. I refuse to buy in to the notion that this goal is out of my reach and I cannot let missteps or stumbles dissuade me from moving ahead.

Today's blessings lie in the time I got to share with my family.  The laughs, the conversation and the L-O-V-E!

Tomorrow is in fact, another day! Another day to practice faith, trust my path and share my heart! 

Oh...the fluff will fall...it is just a matter of time!

Here are a few pics...Much love to you all!

Fun, Family and Football

New Boston WINS!!!

FUN, FAMILY, FOOTBALL

Another Triple F Day!

Mom and I struck out at Noon today for Longview, TX and the Area 2A High School Football playoffs to watch my twin cousins play!

We had a beautiful day to drive...great weather!!

It was a chilly...well...plain old cold night..but GREAT for football!

Good playoff game...close...and the Teague Men ruled! Wes had a pick 6 for what I think, was the nail in the coffin! Both Wes and Wil played a solid game on both sides of the ball!

So we are headlong into a great holiday weekend...lots more fun to be had...

Actually got in a workout today BEFORE our multi hour drive...still forging ON!

Tired...ready to get a few ZZZ'sss

Again...Still on this Journey. ..Still Amazed at each and every blessing!

Here we are freezing!

Everyday Thanksgivings

Happy Thanksgiving to ALL of you.

It has been a full...love filled day with lots of family and friends. 

I hope you all had a wonderful day as well.

Of course...as a fluffy girl on the road to de-fluffing...I have to say that I did a fairly decent job of managing my food today and certainly did enjoy the company...the laughs...complete with kids and puppies, way more than the wonderful food!

Tomorrow we are road-tripping again...headed for more exciting Texas High School Football playoffs AND more fun with my sweet family!!

As I think about this day...I am reminded that EVERY day is worthy of Thanksgiving...Giving thanks for all the precious, simplistic moments that may seem insignificant at the time...but when connected together,  make up the big picture of life!  A beautiful picture!

Today...so many of those moments were crammed into one great day...hugs, seeing smiles I don't get to see often, talking,  laughing, meeting new people and of course, great grub!

Something I love about my family is that we open our hearts and our homes to others and really make every effort to make them feel at home.  That makes me proud!  The true spirit of Thanksgiving....joining together...welcoming and embracing life...God guided!

So as I finish tonight... I will leave you with this thought...Make Every Day Thanksgiving....Only with Healthy Food!  :)

Here is my precious family:

Soul Growing, Love Building, Weight Losing

Happy Thanksgiving EVE!!! 

I hope you are all getting ready for the TRIPLE F!! FUN...FAMILY...FOOD!

Please note that I put FOOD last in my triple F order!  That is my plan! 

I am ready for the Holiday and I am ready for some family time.  Ready for some New Boston Lions  High School football Playoffs in Longview, TX and ready to make another round through the Holidays on this Soul Growing, Love Building, Weight Losing Journey I am on!!

I hope you and your families relish every moment of tomorrow...fill it with as much Joy as you can and relax, renew and refresh!!!

I quoted this scripture today as a part of my reflection on Thanksgiving...I want to share it with all of you! I am keeping this in my heart as I continue on my Journey to learn new ways to live and highlight all of the blessings already present in my life.

"Give thanks to the Lord, For He is Good; His love endures Forever". 1 Chronicles 16:34

Wishing you a day of wonderful, enduring love!! 

Here is a little card from US...

Love and Blessings, Jaime

Making a Permanent Change

Several months ago...or actually more like a year or so ago...someone (actually several someones) told me about a documentary called Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead.  It had been recommended to me as a motivator for my own Journey...

But I just did not want to watch it!!!  I guess it was just too close to  home..in some way.  I have always been a reluctant participant in change!  At least in some change..I have to watch...think...ponder my next move and see some proven results before I take the plunge. 

So when I started this weight loss Journey...the risk for me was big...and Prancing myself into the "spotlight" (so to speak) was a risk that scared the hell of me but as you all know...I KNEW was absolutely necessary and that I too...was Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. 

So today...out of the blue...I decided to watch this documentary...It is a story about an Australian man who weighed over 300lbs...had an autoimmune disease, was taking a buttload of prescription meds just to function and felt as if each day was a struggle and that he was slowly dying. 

HMMMM....Sounds Familiar!  Except for the Australian and the Man part!  That is ME!!!!

So he began "juicing" only for 60 days...and he began to travel and film his Journey through the U.S. He talks about his struggles with food...with the mindset of being an "eater" and he tells his story through his testimony to others. 

As I was watching...He visits the Guru of Juicing Dr. Joel Fuhrman...and during the filming of his own appointment with Dr. Fuhrman...the Dr. stated this...

"You don't get permanently well unless you permanently change the way you live."


That really resonated with me...It is something that I am learning to do everyday of this Journey..and for me...It is truly a daily choice. 

You might think that it would be an easy choice...the choice to be well...and for some it is and easy choice..but for me (and many others) it is complicated...

So as I go headlong into EATING SEASON...I am again, confronted with changing my perspective.  Instead of thinking of the Holidays as a time to EAT...I will continue to focus on all the other reasons there are to celebrate this Holiday Season.

So as this Thanksgiving approaches...I will focus on the following with intention:

All those non-food things that I am Thankful for:

• My family and the time I get to spend with them...
• The Peace of Mind I have knowing that I am still on this Journey for over a year now! 
• The fact that I feel good enough to do things that I could NOT do last year
•  My friends both old and new that are providing the glue that keeps me together
• My willingness to shed my fig leaves and wear the soft clothing that God provides
• I am thankful for ALL of the single God moments that blow my mind and remind me of why this Journey is needed.
• Thankful that God continues to give me the strength I need to take on this Challenge...and take the risk of sharing it daily...Even on days when it feels like it just doesn't make a difference!! 

I have done some really different stuff this past 15 months...I have taken on some wacky physical challenges (at least in my frame of reference)...I have put my heart out there...I have shared this Journey with people out of my league and I have taken the huge risk...of walking in worlds that I would have never thought I belonged.  I am learning to redefine my identity and be willing to make a fool of myself if necessary!! With all of the risks...successful or otherwise I have learned things...things about myself and others that are invaluable. 

So...during the documentary...Joe (the Australian) is asked by a gentlemen..."So what if you do add 5 to 10 years onto your life...what are you going to do with them?  I like that question...This is my answer:

Love more! Share the Joy...Make a Difference ...Shake things up....Prove to myself that I belong wherever I am and Inspire others to do the SAME! 


Strangely...when I started this day...I was not exactly feeling it!  Not sure why...even considered taking a break from all of this honesty and exposure...but now...not so much! 

Forge On!!!! 

Phil 4:13

Here are  few little funnies and thougths for you! Thanks to Brig for making me laugh out loud today!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

Random Thoughts Part II

It is some serious cold here today...rainy......cold.....windy....colder than a well digger's ass in the Clondike!

Consequently,  I am having some unwanted, unsolicited, uninspiring, un-freakin-believable body pain!

This lovely malady that I have seems to be woefully impacted by this weather. ..and has driven me to go to bed...no gym...no passing GO...NO collecting $200... (a little Monopoly reference).

I am alright with taking a night off when I feel like this...for the most part. 

So...my brain however is still motoring along...lots on my mind...no real rhyme or reason....which could make this post a doozie.

So just a few random stories...and I will make an effort to shut down this crazy, fast talking,  life-pondering, slightly bitchy voice in my head!

So...a funny little story...Emily recently let me know that she had eaten some gluten free pretzels from Sprouts.  This is how our conversation went

EMILY:  Aunt Jaime, don't you shop at Sprouts?

ME: Yes...Why?

EMILY:  I have a friend at school who eats these pretzels that are Gluten Free and she gets them at Sprouts. I really like them!

ME: Would you like for me to get you a bag?

EMILY: YES!  But Aunt Jaime...I don't know why my friend eats gluten free pretzels. ..She is not even a Gluten!!

I love stuff like that...little funny moments wrapped up in a request for gluten free pretzels! 

Another random thought...Every Thanksgiving of my entire life (at least the best part) my Grandmother made homemade pumpkin bread the night before Thanksgiving. ..which meant that every Thanksgiving morning. ..while I was glued to the TV watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade...I had pumpkin bread for breakfast.  I MISS THAT!

Fact: I am 46 years old and have NEVER missed a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade....have even been twice to NYC to see live and in person!

FACT: I was once a clown in the Humble High School homecoming parade....complete with big red nose and big giant clown shoes!

Another fact:  I LOVE giving gifts to people....can hardly wait for Christmas!!

Another fact:  When Emily was little...She got SO excited for other people to open gifts at Christmas....even more excited than getting gifts...LOVE THAT!

Fact: I am 46 years old and not only does Santa Claus still leave me gifts...so does SANTA MOUSE...a tradition that started when I received a book (by the same name) from our neighbor Mary Ann when I was 6 or 7 years old.

One more random thought. ..despite the discomfort this cold blustery weather creates...I love it...it makes it feel like the holidays. ..my favorite time of year!

So...tonight...I stayed home with my random thoughts...tomorrow....back to the gym. ..taking the next step in God's direction...reaching for a big dream!

YOU Are the Glue

Hello and Happy Sunday Evening!

It has been a lovely, chilly day here in Houston. A fairly standard Sunday for me...church...lunch...laundry...groceries. ..workout which consisted of sprints on the rower, 20 minutes on the bike, and the step trainer and my "quiet" time.

You can imagine that somedays I sit down to write this blog and think..."how many different ways is there to discuss being fat...forty(ish) and on a mission to radically change my fluffy, sick body into a happenin' healthy body!

It is on those days that I think about how hilarious it might be just to write.... still fat....blah, blah, blah, still forty (ish)...yadi, yadi, yah and STILL on a mission...hip, hip, hoorah!

Then I think...well...that would not be upholding my commitment to post daily about this Journey.   Because no matter how mundane it may seem...the DAILY journey tells the real story.  It is a day in and day out Journey...it is not Quick and Easy...at least not for me!

But during the daily grind of taking this Journey...there are so many little moments that fit together like a puzzle...that when viewed from afar...make an amazing picture.

As Thanksgiving rolls around....I, like many of you, am thinking of all of the many blessings I have in my life.  I really do attempt to frequently acknowledge those blessings fully knowing that the blessings in my life serve as the glue that keeps all my many puzzle pieces together and ultimately,  creates a beautiful picture.

Without the blessings...the presence of love, support, honesty, prayers. ..the challenges and triumphs would not fit together....would not make sense. 

So...despite my own critical voice...I am trusting this process...trusting the intentionality of my posts, pics...even selfies...as a way to glue together this dream.  Putting myself out there daily. .."Facebooking", Tweeting, Instagramming this Journey will ultimately help me continue to create this beautiful picture that depicts the unlikely Journey...The Life of a Fluffy Girl...scratching and clawing her way to a new healthy happiness. 

My sincerest hope is that each of you continue to hang in there with me for the ride...For You Are The Glue!

Blessings to you all! Jlp