Happy Leap Day

So I am one of those people who LOVES February 29th. I'm not sure when it happened but to celebrate I am going to tell you why I love it. To me it is a time to both reflect and look forward, the fact that this day only comes around once every four years makes it special. I think my intrigue started when in 2004 I found a letter I had written to Dan on February 29th 2000. It said "Happy Leap Day! Just think the next time this date rolls we might be planning our wedding" And, in fact on February 29th 2004 we were engaged and planning our wedding for that September. I remember thinking in 2004 as I was planning my wedding "I wonder where we will be in 4 years? I wonder if we will have a baby?" Fast forward 4 years to the next leap year in 2008 and we in fact had welcomed our first beautiful child into the world. This year that 8 month old baby who was just beginning to crawl is a 4 1/2 year old beautiful, sweet, hilarious girl. We also have a 2 year old crazy man who is so handsome and hilarious even though he doesn't talk near as much as his sister did at 2. This year I can't help but reflect on my past but also think about where we will be on February 29th 2016. This much I know, my sweet girl will be 8 1/2 and my baby boy who just turned 2 will have just turned 6 and will be in kindergarden. This is enough to make me have a panic attack but then I thought about how both my babies will also be in school full time, and now I really can't breath. I think about Carter who only says 2 words together today and how he will be a full grown kid, older than Stella is now! It's so crazy but also humbling. It makes me realize how precious this time is and how fast it will be gone. It makes me want to live in the moment and makes as many memories as I can during these crazy years. So Happy Leap Day friends cheers to the past, present, and future!

FAQ about Insanity

So, since I talk about my insanity workout journey I have had a lot of people asking me about it and I LOVE it! I love to talk about it and answer any questions. I thought I would write a FAQ post about it incase anyone else wants to know. So here it goes...

Q: what do you think of insanity?
A: this is a tricky one to answer for me, let me state once again that it is the hardest thing I have ever done, it is pretty brutal in my opinion BUT I want to make a big change and I know without a doubt that sticking to this exercise routine will do that. So it's truly a love/hate relationship, lol

Q: is it really hard?
A: YES! But it is definitely "doable" I also like the fact that I have something to work on and I have been able to see my improvement.

Q: how much weight have you lost?
A: I am not weighing myself until I am done with the program. Personally I am more concerned with my size and how I look rather than my weight. When I started I couldn't even do 1 push up, now I can do several at a time. I know I am building muscle so if I am not losing a ton of pounds I do not want to get discouraged because I know I am building muscle.

If you have any other questions please ask, I really do love it. This is a journey for me and talking about it to others make it so much more fun.

One Month Down!

I have successfully completed my first month of the insanity workouts. I have never worked out so hard in my life, I am constantly sore and have now starting icing my legs at night. I feel like I am actually almost an athlete, lol. I always remember reading articles about losing weight where they say you need to work out 5-6 days a week and I would always think "that is crazy! who would/could do that?" Well now I have, yes I have worked out 6 days a week for the last 4 weeks. This alone is a huge accomplishment for me. I want to write about this journey to encourage everyone who has been where I was, in a constant state of being sick of how you look but not doing anything to change it. Trust me, if I can do it, you can. I hate working out! Even after a month I still hate every second of it. Every day I think "I don't want to do it, maybe I will just skip today." But I made a decision when I started this that for once I am going to actually give working out all I have. And although I hate every moment of it once I am done I feel great, not physically, physically I want to die BUT I am proud of myself that I can check one more day off the calendar.

Here's a little picture of me at the end of a workout, I sweat like a man, it's not pretty.

Day 7

After we left and was done with our ministry time we had the complete blessing of being able to go and stay in a hotel for our last night in India. I didn't realize until we got to the hotel how completely exhausted I was. It was so nice to be able to decompress a little before we made the almost full day of travel back home. The rest of the trip was pretty smooth sailing...except when they almost didn't let us in the airport to go home...and then when one of our team members got very sick :(. God shined down on us again on the way home and once again almost all of us got a full row to ourselves on the plane ride home. When we arrived to Chicago I think it was possibly one of the best feelings ever. And then to arrive back home and get to hold my sweet babies in my arms, I could have not been any happier. I was then in a comma for about 2 days just constantly sleeping. I think once I was in my own home my body finally relaxed and I crashed. Dan said he was actually worried about me because I was sleeping so much lol.

The trip was an amazing experience, I feel so honored that I was able to go and spend time with these wonderful people, that so many of them just lovingly welcomed us into their lives. I will forever be in awe that God called me to go and the journey I was taken on from start to finish. This trip stretched my faith and I was able to see and feel the presence of God like never before. I will forever remember the faces, sights, smells, and emotions of that trip. Thank you so much to everyone who supported me in this great adventure, it would not have been possible without every one of you and I will never be able to thank you enough. xoxo

Here is a picture of me on the plane ride home