I Like Progress

I am so excited about this and need to write about it because it just makes me feel like I am actually being successful with my goal.  I short while ago I blogged about myself and how I am working on losing weight and getting healthier.  So I am on fire and working out almost every day, I say almost because some times with the kids and things that I have to do there just isn't enough time to do it all. But even with skipping the gym all last week I have to say that the kids and I did pretty good staying active while we danced away with the Wii game "Just Dance 4".  Yeah that game is rally cool and keeps all of us moving.  Tristan has shown more interested in working out with me and today we did 45 minutes of Zumba and I am pretty sure we burned close to 900 calories... it was intense.  Plus he is learning some dance moves as well.
If you see the little ticker at the top of the blog it shows my progress so far since I started to work hard on getting back on track.  Well since I joined the gym the progress started to show more and I am happy to say that I have lost 10 lbs with eating healthy and exercise. I am now 17 lbs away from my goal.  For some reason this last two weeks have been really good and I am sure that by the end of this week I will be closer.  My goal is to lose 2 lbs a week or at least 4 lbs a month which is pretty realistic.  I am just so excited and can't contain myself.  I am pretty sure Dan is tired of listening to me but also lets me know that he is happy with my progress and he is being extra supportive :)  On Sunday I was told by a few people that I am looking skinnier and that meant the world to me, it is nice that it finally shows to people that I don't see every day.  My pants are a sad story, they are all so baggy now, it is so embarrassing   I have a couple of my old pants that are size 8 but they have seen better days but I will wait and wait until I can buy the pants in the size that I want so the money wont be wasted.
I can tell that my dresses are going to need some alterations, I noticed that a couple of my skirts are way too loose on my waist so that's going to be a challenge because I love my skirts and don't want to get rid of them.
So next month I will write another personal note on how I am doing and how my progress is coming along.  Keep working hard Hyde, it is so close!!!! :)

Victor is 11!!

So the phrase "wow time goes by really fast" is getting old... but I guess it's the truth.  My sweet baby boy, my first born son is 11.
It is a joy to have so many kids in our family and we love each and every one the same in their own way.  Victor is definitely our very special model, there is no one like him and that is kind of cool because he is really unique.
I see greatness in Victor, a future missionary, maybe a teacher, writer or even an architect  like he has been saying lately. He is happy boy after finally fulfilling his dream of having  his own room and very well deserved if you ask me.  Having to put up with the mess that two little brothers make all day long is not fun or fair.
We had a nice family celebration, I find that they are the best for me and Victor really didn't care for a big party either.  We gave him his presents a little early because we wanted him to have some time to play with them  I got him a new Lego Chima set which he loved, some World of Warcraft Mega blocks and Dan got him a BB gun and a Dungeons and Dragons beginners set.  He also got a present from Grandma Brown and a nice card.  We celebrated the night of his birthday with cake( cake tutorial here ) and a nice hot dog dinner but on Saturday we took him to Chuck E cheeses' with a friend to spend some time on their own while Dan and I sat at the table talking, laughing and simply enjoying each other's company.  Later we went out as a family to have our traditional birthday dinner which was free for the kids.  I think he did have a great time this last week, getting tons of attention and playing with his new toys.

I can see my little boy becoming a young man and it is kind of weird and cool at the same time.  I wish he could stay innocent and little forever, so sad that you can't keep them the way they are right now and protect them from all the stuff that's out there.  He is already talking about when he goes to middle school and that just makes me so nervous for him but I know that he will survive it.  I really feel blessed with my Victor, he is the best!!!  Happy Birthday Vito!!!!!

Inspiration comes to you in the weirdest places.

Yesterday I took Kahlan to the doctor to get a little spot on her skin checked out and as usual it took forever so my plans for the day kind of went down the drain.  What I did do was clean the bathrooms which had been on my mind since a week ago.  I mean the bathrooms get cleaned by the kids every week once a week at least and I do that to teach them how to take care of things around the house so when they have a home of their own they can pitch in, it doesn't matter if you are a boy or a girl, you should all know how to clean a bathroom period, then I do a big cleaning session about once a month so they can actually get really really cleaned. So Victor so far is the best at cleaning the bathroom and if you give him a good incentive he will do it even better.... Shayna on the other hand has a hard time cleaning after the boys, which I completely understand so she usually gets the easiest bathroom.  I get my bathroom cleaned up but had forgotten about it for a while and it kept calling my name until Dan cleaned the toilet for me and that was the push I needed ha ha.  He did a great job but I needed to finish the entire thing.  So I pushed myself to go ahead and clean all three bathrooms while Kahlan took a nap.  Before I knew it the kids made it home and then my cleaning got interrupted and it took me almost two hours to finish it all.  

OK so moving on to my special spiritual experience.  As I was cleaning my toilet I came to the same spot where I have a problem with, the tank is kind of loose and it always makes me nervous that it will brake off the base and that would be so bad, then it hit me, my wonderful father in law many many MANY years ago while we lived in VA had come to our house for yet another project that got too complicated for Dan and me.  The toilet was giving us a hard time and he came and helped us fix it, in the process of fixing it he noticed the toilet tank was way to far off the wall and he then showed me how to do an easy fix, he asked for a piece of Styrofoam and put in in between the tank and wall and it fixed the problem.  Funny how that little fix made me feel better about our toilet and the house even sold with that little piece of Styrofoam in there.  I had forgotten all about it until today.  I immediately went to look for a piece and put it in there.  I am happy to say it really does the trick.  Anyways as I am sitting there on my knees finishing the job I kept thinking about him and all the things he ever talked to me about, all of our one on one conversations when he was always teaching me something or giving me advice on so many things.  He was such a good person and so good to me, he really did make feel special and I could feel that he loved me as if I were his own daughter.  I always admired all the knowledge he had and all his stories even if he added some extra details in them and you know what, that's what made him who he was, a story teller.

When I say that he helped me through so many things I mean mostly by just listening and when asked he would give me his wise advise and there was this particular time when I was having a really really hard time and was extremely mad and he said such kind words to me, instead of telling me what I wanted to hear he pointed out my strengths and told me how much better of a person I would be if I just did the kind and nice thing at the time.  I have to say I followed his advice and to this day I don't regret it, he knew me better than I did at that moment and I know he was the answer to my prayers then and he was talking to me once again some how in the bathroom.

I have been dealing with some personal stuff once again and he is not there to call him, but his words were loud and clear and I know what I need to do now and I will follow his advice.  The Lord has answered my prayers through him somehow and I am grateful for it.  Funny how stubborn we are and we just keep looking for what we want to hear, what we think would be the solution but in the end it is always required of us to be humble and to do the right thing.  

I have to say that I often think of him and get really sad but then I turned it around and end up laughing at the silly things he used to joke about with me, he is missed every day. 

So there is my little story of the day and I am happy I wrote it down because I don't want to forget this. 

Spring Break!!

Yay it's Monday after Spring Break and I feel like am doing pretty good with writing this post.
Sprink Break was a very much needed break, I didn't have to babysit at all and it gave us time to spend time with the kids (mostly me).  The kids enjoyed getting up later and lets face it I got to wake up at 8 am instead of 6 am.
We didn't really do that much but we did manage to spend time together a lot.
On Monday we worked really hard on getting their rooms cleaned up and finally getting Victor's room all set up with his furniture and clothes in place.  Shayna worked really hard on her room too and we were all very pleased with the results.  Since we worked all day we were pretty tired and with no dinner made by the time Dan go home, he suggested that we go out for dinner at Texas Road House since they have kids eat free on Mondays and that is just what we did.  We had a great time and the kids actually behaved better than expected even Kahlan.  Funny story... there was this guy sitting right next to us the entire time we were there and kept glancing at us every 5 minutes or so, he made me really nervous and kept waiting for him to say something to us, I thought it bothered him that we had so many kids or something but when we were getting ready to go he started to talk to the waitress and I thought "Oh boy here we go!", finally I heard the last of their conversation and he said that he was impressed with our family and how well behaved they were, how we didn't have to discipline them even once.... I was in shock, really?  My kids?  Anyways, it felt good that he was noticing that and not the glances and stares we were giving them when they were a little crazy.  It was a fun and nice evening with very good food.
On Tuesday we headed for the park after I hit the gym that morning and went on a hike so Victor can pass some Scout stuff, we walked for over an hour and had fun taking pics with Shayna and just listening to all the creatures out there, the weather was perfect.  After the walk we went to have a mini picnic and then let the kids loose to enjoy the playground, funny how Shayna still find way to entertain herself there.  Aaron blew bubble for a while and then we went home. I rented the Just Dance 4 game for the Wii and let the kids have at it for two days in a row, we all had fun playing with it.  Later that day Shayna and I had mutual night so we left the boys at home and went to have a spa day... they basically did their nails, had a massage and some got their hair done.


Wednesday I think we did much.  Shayna at some point made some worms out of gel-lo  but they didn't turn out that great, it was still cute that she tried to do something fun.
Thursday I took the kids over to their friends house they could all play for a while and their mom and I cut coupons for 2 hours straight.



Friday we spent the day home, I got a migraine at some point and went to lay down for a while but we did manage to get some time with the kids shooting with the BB guns and Dan even set up the gazebo thing in the back yard.  It was kind of cute to see them all set up for it, they love shooting with their dad.  Dan and Shayna tried to go to the movies but their movie was sold out and instead went out for lunch together. They brought us food for lunch too, it was really nice.






Saturday morning I took the little ones to the church for an Easter activity and in the afternoon took Shayna to a Youth activity.  It was the first time she went to a stake thing and she performed with her friends in front of everyone.  I still remember when I did that the first time, I was so nervous but it was a lot of fun too.  They did a good job considering they didn't practice that much and didn't have a lot of people in their group.

 Oh yeah and in between the church activities Dan and I managed to cook this awesome traditional Guatemalan meal called "Churrasco", basically something you eat at a special get together with grilled stake, grilled chicken and corn, baked potatoes, rice and beans, tortillas, chirmol (salsa) and you are all set.  It was delicious!!!

So all in all it was a good break and now we are back to reality and it was a nice Monday, quiet and full of kids at my house again!

Pinewood Derby 2013

 This year Victor had the chance to participate for the last time and Tristan for the first time ever.  We worked really hard on their cars and I think they did a great job.  None of the boys came home with a trophy this year but their attitude towards the whole thing was just wonderful.  I am really proud of my boys. They insisted on doing their decorations on the cars all by themselves and it gave them a sense of accomplishment.  I really enjoy watching them develop skills and making memories at the same time.

 The grey car is Aaton's for the outlaw race.

 This black with crazy designs is Victors and the green at the top is Tristan's

 Getting their cars registered for the race.

 All lined up ready to go.

 Their cars were all in last place in every single race, I did not do a good job with the wheels and they didn't go as fast as the others.

 The family watching the races.

 Here is Victor shaping his car the little ones painting theirs.

 Can you tell he is excited?

Finding Me

A few years back I looked at the mirror and the reflection I saw there was not me, it scared me that I could not see me in there at all.  Maybe the eyes looked the same and the hair, but other than that there was a person that I could not recognize.  I don't know how it happened, I guess we were too busy living life and I forgot to pay attention to me.

I remember when we first got married with Dan and all the things we did together, then Shayna came along and we adjusted to life as parents, one by one each of the kids brought so much happiness and excitement so why then my face did not look the same?  

I honestly can tell that physically I had changed, inside I am still me, maybe a little stronger and a little wiser but still the same old me.

What each pregnancy did to my body is just crazy, I gained almost 60 lbs with my first baby. I did manage to go back down in size and weight and just before I got pregnant with Victor I still looked like me.  After Victor the weight came off easier and faster, it wasn't until I had Tristan that I started to notice the pounds were not coming off easily and some times at all.  I was left with 10 extra pounds that I battled to get off constantly.  After we moved to Utah I just kept putting the weight on, no matter how hard I tried to get skinnier it didn't help.  I guess you can say that I kind of gave up for a while, maybe a couple of years and then I got pregnant with Aaron.  During that pregnancy I had an eye opener, during my visits to the doctor's office they found that I once again had to deal with GD (gestational diabetes) and the doctor stressed out how important it was that I kept active and followed a healthy diet, for the sake of the baby I did and it worked, I only gained 16 lbs with that pregnancy.  My doctor was so proud of me and the fact that they didn't have to prescribe insulin at all.

Fast forward a couple of years and we have our move to Texas, I was 20 lbs over my ideal weight, another 10 lbs that would not go away.  I still did not follow the advice of the doctor then and didn't eat quite as healthy as I should have been, I made some changes to our diet as a family so we didn't intake a lot of meat, I had been doing that for a while anyways.  But I do remember that when we first moved here I was very active, walking every day and maybe a little stressed about finding a house but I thought I was doing better.  Still the weight just kept coming back and gaining more each year.  

I did a few diets, nothing worked, kept walking and using the bike, even got a treadmill and still didn't work.

I gave up again and then Dan and I did a diet together and he lost about 30 lbs, I only lost 10.... to once again gain it all back.

When we finally decided it was time to have another baby I was a little concerned about my health every time I got on the scale, I did get sick as usual (morning sickness is a killer for me) and eventually developed GD again.... I was devastated of course but at the same time I was pushed to follow a healthier diet from that point on.  

Food is probably my biggest weakness.  I cook really good meals and some times I just can''t help myself so having a diet to follow was a very good thing for me a that point.  Since I was already overweight based on my height I really did not want to gain 30 lbs + again, I guess you can say I was grateful to get GT (but not really).

I got sent to a specialist and he really opened my eyes for good this time around. He gave me the facts and explained how important it was that I followed this "diet" to the letter and to keep it with me for the rest of my life, he said to not see it as a diet but as a way of life instead and that right there did it for me.  

Sure it has been a long process and a painful one at that, but I am working on it every day.  Sure I still go out and eat every once in a while but I am more aware of the damage I can do to my body if I don't follow it through.  

So after Kahlan was born I stuck with it, not perfectly but I kept trying, I have to say that the hardest times were when my mom came to visit, with all the great cooking I always managed to get some weight on me.

This last time I begged her to not get mad at me about not letting her cook but I really have a hard time saying no to her food, it is comfort foo at its best. It was really hard for her but she understood (most of the time)

Anyways, after my surgery I promised myself that I would take care, better care of myself. My chances of getting Diabetes type 2 now are at 75% more than anyone else, because I am Latina and because I had GD with 3 out of 5 pregnancies.  I know that I posted about this a a while back but I really don't want to deal with insulin for the rest of my life and I am on a battle to reverse that 75% 

Well my hard work has finally payed off.  I did have a diet that I followed for 15 days last year and it helped me get rid of the stubborn 10 lbs post Kahlan, with a lot of work I got to a point where I felt that a little more helped was needed and so I joined a gym, not paying lots of money for it and I only go twice a week but WOW!!!!!! it has made the whole difference.  I have lost inches off my waist, thighs and arms.  It doesn't really show that much but I can feel it and see it myself.  Even Dan told me the other night that he saw the change.  I mean, my pants are so loose and comfortable.  I literally have to wear a belt to make them stay.  I have been able to dig clothes out of my closet that I had not been able to wear for the  last 4 years.

I am building muscle more than anything and haven't lost a lot of weight in this last month but I love the results so far, I am reshaping my body and I found my waist again!!!  I still have lots of work to do and planning on doing a big reveal around June, I will take some pics to show the difference and hoping that even if I only lose 10 lbs more, I will feel better about myself.  

I started to look at the mirror again with a little smile on my face I think I can see me a little bit in there.

Here are some pics from about 2 years ago and even a few months ago and some pics from now.  My favorite is the one with the dress I wore to Tristan's baptism back in September, it is probably my favorite dress and I wasn't able to get past the second whole on my belt, I put it on today and I was able to go down to the 4th whole, how cool is that?

 The picture above is from October 2011, I was still nursing Kahlan at the time, hence the big boobs :) The picture below was taken today as you can see the top is a little bit more loose. This was the heaviest I had been my whole life without being pregnant. I have lost 28-30 lbs to this day.

 This is what inspired me to write about this today, look at the two pics below, same skirt and top but you can fit my whole fist in the skirt.  So embarrased to say but the skirt is a size 12.... yeah it was getting bad.

 Awesome!!

 This pic above was taken last year in October too, my favorite dress because it used to hidd my fatness.  Two pics below show how much better the dress looks on me, there is a waist in there.

 Cool!

 I had not been able to fit into a size 8 skirt in years, this skirt right here is a size 6, yes a size 6!!!

And here is my favorite picture of today, this top I wore for the last time some time in 2009, why do I remember that?  Because it was one of my favorite tops ever and I could not button it up at all.  My bra size went down from 36 to 34 and that is a big difference.  

I am not close to my goal but so far I like the results and hope that with this post I have a way to remind myself of my ultimate goal which is to have a healthier body all the way around.  I can already see the difference in my energy level, it used to be at zero but now I feel like I want to go go go all the time.  Rarely take naps and love getting my gym clothes on.  Keep going me, I CAN DO IT!!!!