Weight Watchers here I come!

I remember ten years ago when I was "thin". I was 21, going to SF State Univ., and working at the Hungry Hunter in Daly City. I was 150 pounds. I'm tall, ok, so that was slim to me. Although my boyfriend at the time said I still had baby fat...man, was he a jerk! No wonder we broke up! :-) I digress.

A lot has happened in ten years. Once I quit waiting tables I gained 10 pounds almost instantly. You'd be surprised how much walking your servers do in one night. When I moved back home more weight came on, 20 more pounds.

Then, a few years later, I got married. Even more weight came on...we're talking 35 pounds! I didn't know how to cook then so my husband and I went out to eat...a lot. We both got fat together (Awww).

Then the baby came and with him came 15 more pounds that never went away.

So in ten years I went from a slender beauty to an extra large charmer. Well I'm tired of this extra large crap! I'm tired of having to go to the plus-size side of the store. So Monday I'm starting Weight Watchers. I've never done WW before. But I am bound and determined to lose most of this excess mass.

My husband will begin Weight Watchers next week too. We got fat together so we're going to lose the fat together. I've got one of the best hubbies in the whole wide world!

So on my blog I've put the weight ticker. I need accountability so this will help in that area. My husband and my friends Raquel and Carrie will also help me too. By me knowing that they're doing WW too is accountability enough for me! That's enough to push me into following the guidelines, making better choices and getting my butt to the gym.

I know the journey back into size 12/14 will be hard and long. If it took me 10 years to gain 80 pounds, it will take a while to get 60-70 pounds to come off. But it's a road I want to take (I say that now, before the hard times begin!)

So this is the beginning. And I'm excited!

One of my servants is sick...

It's true. Actually I have many servants. I know it sounds snobbish of me. But I'm pretty sure you have a few yourself. All of my servants require electricity from an outlet. You know, my washing machine, dryer, mixer, toaster oven, microwave, etc. These are my servants.


The one who is sick at the moment is my dishwasher. She's leaking water. When she decides it's time to drain, the water pours out of the top of my sink and below the sink too. Oh yes, she's really sick.

Something I've learned from this is the following: You never REALLY know how hard someone (ok, or something) works until you do their job. Now that I am picking up her slack and washing dishes by hand I realize that she is one hard working servant. Man, does she save me time and energy...when she's up and running.

I'm not sure when I'll have the money to help her back to life. But until then I sure will miss her!

The Lab Results Are In

The nurse called my cell phone and left me a voice mail asking me to return her call last Friday.

It makes me kind of nervous when you get a phone call from the doctor's office. I mean, usually when the results are normal and there's nothing to worry about they just send you a letter in the mail. They usually don't even sign it. In fact, it's something they just printed off of their hard drive and hand checked the 'normal' box.

But when it's not normal they call. And when they call and get voice mail they won't tell you what's going on. They just tell you to call them back. They don't even hint at what's going on.

But when it's super bad they take it to the next step; they schedule you a follow-up appointment. I've never had one of those and I hope I never do.

So when I heard the cryptic message (This is Dr. So and So's office. Please give me a call back regarding your lab results.) I got a little nervous. Did I forget to mention that the nurse called first thing in the morning - yes, before 8am.

So my heart races, I breathe deep and I call. I eventually get the nurse and she has to look up my chart. What??? She forgot who I am; she forgot the results?!? Believe it or not that makes me feel better. If my hormone levels were so out of whack and I was doomed to infertility, well you think she'd remember that.

She finds the results...they...are...normal! Yeehaw (as my son would say)!

Then she says something that threw me for a loop. "Dr. So and So wants to know if you want her to give you a referal to an infertility specialist."

"Uhh, umm, uhh", I respond. (Deep, I know.) I never thought of seeing a specialist. I mean, sure it's been 14 whole months of trying to get pregnant. But, on the other hand it's only been 14 months.

When you think of it, it's only 14 unsuccessful attempts. Fourteen times no one on the swim team has found the coveted egg at the finish line. I think we'll continue to give the team a chance.

"No, thanks. But if I ever change my mind I'll call you back." At least I know I have a bridge that hasn't been burned.

Here comes another trial

Trials. Part of me wishes I didn't have to go through them. But a bigger part of me knows better. Trials are meant to do so much: to build character, to keep us close and relying on God, to show other people just how big my God is...this list goes on.

So here's the scoop:

My husband's truck needs $1,500 worth of repairs. Keep in mind he only paid $6,000 for it and it is now 11 years old. It seems hardly worth the money. Do we fix it? (To fix it we'd have to use our vacation money which, as you can imagine, we do NOT want to do). Do we buy a newer one? Keep in mind that we have had 3 years without any car payments and let me tell you, it's been really nice. Or do we do something else? I don't know what that would be but I do know better than to put God in a box.

So what to do? Well, we prayed. And we're not moving until God gives us part A of His plan. It's that simple. Afterall, "because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail", Lamenations 3:22.

This morning I read in 1 Samuel 11 about a trial that came upon some Israelites and God used it and turned it into a major triumph for His people. That trial was exactly what was needed for Israel to see Saul as their king. And it was what was needed for Saul to step up and act like a king. That trial needed to come and it came at the perfect time!

Well maybe, just perhaps, this trial is something that my family needs to go through. I don't know why yet...I may never know why. That doesn't matter. What does matter is that God is totally in control of this situation, we are totally relying on God to meet our needs, and our hearts are fully set on Him. I'll put myself out there and say that God will come through for us. Keep in mind that I don't know what that is going to look like when this trial is over. But when He does, you can rejoice with us!

To be continued...

Jesus Paid It All - Kristian Stanfill

I love this song!

My doctor visit

Today I went to the doctor. My mother-in-law suggested it was time to go. Come to think of it, I hadn't been to see my doctor in over a year and my mother-in-law does have a lot of wisdom... plus she's the only mommy I've got. After all, you've got to listen to your mother. Besides, I love her a lot! So I went.

I mentioned to my doctor that Pascual and I (aren't we so cute -->) have been trying to conceive for over a year and I wondered if she had any medical advice. She thought I should get my hormone levels checked out. A good idea.

She knows I'm a SAHM and we only bring in one income. So as she was filling out the lab paperwork she asked me if I had been tired lately (as she was shaking her head yes). I was kinda puzzled and asked if there was a correct answer to her question. She said yes, so I told her that I had been feeling a little tired lately. I mean, come on. Which mom doesn't feel tired, right? She responded with, "I thought so. Besides, now your insurance will pay for the lab work. That, and the fact that you've been having irregular periods" (which was news to me). She called it a "creative diagnosis". I called it free lab work. Besides, she checked a billion boxes on that lab work sheet so I knew it was going to be an expensive lab bill.

So off I went, from her office to PAL. They took a gazillion viles of blood. Ok, probably only 5 but it looked like I was at Houchin. Nevertheless, I was in and out in no time. A pleasant (and free for me) experience.

My doctor, who for insurance fraud reasons shall remain nameless :-), will let me know the results when she knows.

Have I mentioned how much I love my doctor?!?

Be a living sacrifice

Hello all! I took my friend Raquel's advice; I'm starting my own blog. Thanks for that, Raquel.

I read this morning in Romans 12 about how my body is to be a living sacrifice to God. The thing with me is that I tend to forget what I read and in return forget to practice what I read.
So I've been thinking about what it means to be a living sacrifice. Sacrifice implies giving something up or doing something that you don't want to do, in this case, for the sake of pleasing God. So, with that in mind, this week I'm going to try to put this into practice. I'll try to keep you updated....we'll see.