Gearing up for fall

Thought I'd try a few new things for fall decorating and I loved many of the ideas from Sand and Sisal.  They used MDF letters, but I wanted to use things I had on hand - so I cut some letters from cereal boxes.  I might use a thicker box if I decide to re-do them, but this worked pretty well.  Now that I look back at mine and the example, I might adjust my ribbon lengths, but I used all items I had at home (boxes, ribbon from another project, scrapbook paper, fall leaves from fake flower bouquet and Modge Podge) so this didn't cost me a penny!

I like the topiary from Sand and Sisal too, but while I was at the Dollar Tree, I found some small craft pumpkins and thought I'd try something with them (there are lots of cute ideas on Pintrest, I tried spray paint like Wild Ink but before I spray painted, I did a little decorating with puffy paint...not sure how well it shows up in the pictures, but the only thing I would do different is get a glossy paint for the black one, or add a glossy coat (which I may still do).  For now, my little pumpkins are keeping watch on the porch ledge.

It's an INCH loss plan

Kyle here this time… So if you read Cheryl’s post, you might be thinking, “Did I read that right? Is Kyle doing Cinch too?” The answer is yes. We are in this together… but for different reasons.

Cinch isn’t just about weight loss. It is about inch loss and being healthier. I have always been unhappy with a belly that I have carried around, even after the weight loss I had with Weight Watchers in 2004. While I have kept the weight off, there was still that nagging paunch that I saw in the morning, even if no one else did,

Then I read an interesting article in a magazine while on a business trip last month.  (For more info, see page 124 of the August 2012 issue of Delta’s Sky Magazine and look at the article “Gut Check” written by Amy Paturel) The article was talking about measuring health, which up until now had been done by Body Mass Index (BMI). It calculates a number based on height and weight and if you are between 18.5 and 25, congratulations, you’re healthy! But is it that simple? Well yes and no. There are some people (think professional or Olympic athletes) that have lots of muscle mass. Since muscle weighs more than fat, their BMI comes in greater than 25, sometimes greater than 30! But would we say that an Olympic swimmer, or pro football running back is out of shape and unhealthy? Of course not.

The article went on to say that a better measure is to measure the size of the “belly” vs. the size of the hips. Take the ratio of the two measurements and the closer to 0.9 you are the better. In fact, Dr. Francisco Lopez-Jimenez of the Mayo Clinic is quoted as saying, “A ratio higher than 0.9, specifically higher than 1.0 represents an increased risk of heart disease and diabetes.”

That’s because Visceral fat (you know- that deep down, hard to get rid of belly fat) is more metabolically active and contributes to raising blood pressure and creating blood clots compared to subcutaneous fat (those inches you can pinch). However, research shows that subcutaneous fat in the hips and legs can actually be helpful. Therefore, this ratio helps weed out skinny people with limited muscle mass and not enough fat elsewhere but are storing it only in their bellies…

And that’s where it comes back to me. I fall into that group pretty well. As we start Cinch, my waist (belly) measurement is 35.75 inches and my hip measurement is 35.0. So my ratio is 1.02. My goal is to hit that 0.9 that the article talks about. What will my weight do? I don’t know. And I really don’t care. For me the journey isn’t about pounds, it’s about inches. At the Shaklee Global Conference, one of the Cinch success stories was a lady who didn’t lose a single pound on Cinch, she only lost 4 dress sizes. Pretty soon, I plan to have them talking about me too. So I will update my progress along the way too, and hopefully add another success story to the Cinch Inch Loss Plan. 

Lessons I learn from running

I have always enjoyed running.  In junior high I joined the track team, I wasn't a star, but I enjoyed it and learned a lot about conditioning your body for running. In high school, during softball conditioning each spring, I was determined to keep up with the upperclassmen and tried to stay near the front of the pack on runs. But over the years, and two children later, I haven't kept up the habit as much as I would have liked.  But when I get a chance to run, I am reminded about why I like it and the lessons running teaches me.

For instance, I have learned that I don't really care for running (long) distances on a track: to me it's boring and I lose track of how many laps I've done. I would much rather run outside, going somewhere or in larger circles, than round and round a small inside track.  When I run outside there is beautiful scenery to look at, people to wave to, fresh air... and running outside usually means that the course is not flat.  There may be big hills or gentle slopes.  That's where the challenge comes.  In our neighborhood, I run a couple of loops, making a figure 8 - it starts out pretty flat. After first turn I get the ease of a slight downward slope on the next straightaway so sometimes I try to take advantage of gravity and make up some time on my run.  As I turn the next corner, I have a short uphill run, then the next long stretch is a slight upward slope.  As I finish that stretch, it levels out and I return to the downward sloping stretch.  Then another gradual uphill slope to my starting point.  When I get to this last hill, I start to notice fatigue. BUT, and here's the great part, I know once I get past it, I'm back to that flat stretch and I get some recovery time as I prepare to do it again.  After a few laps, as I get to the end of my run, that last hill always challenges me - I debate about just starting my cool down or kicking it up a notch and just getting it over with.  Usually, my track experience and competitive spirit win over and I "race" to the finish line.  I love the feeling pushing through the pain and finishing my goal.

That makes me think about how our lives go: some parts of life are "flat stretches" or even "downhill stretches" and pretty easy, or even fun to go faster and enjoy the ride. Sometimes, the "uphill" parts of life are harder - sometimes they are short and sometimes there is a stretch of "uphill" life that seems to go on. And sometimes there are those "hills" that make us want to quit trying.

I had been on what seemed to be a never ending uphill struggle.  Even though I had 2 wonderful, healthy children, I was still angry and sad about the 2 I never knew; I couldn't understand why we had to go through it; I was jealous of others that got pregnant so easily. And I felt bad for even having those feelings.  I was getting down on myself and it wasn't doing me or my family any good.  After months of blaming God and just going through the motions, half-heartedly trying to pray with the boys & go to Bible class (you know, staying in the habit), rarely paying too much attention to the sermons, I started hearing 1 or 2 points our minister made each Sunday - like he was saying them right to me.  Other things started to get my attention too. When I finally "went forward" one Sunday and just admitted that I didn't have it all together and I was tired of pretending, the burden I had been carrying was lifted. I had put my foot down on the lies that were filling my head and leaned on the promises of my Lord again.

God calls Satan the deceiver in Revelation.  Don't let him feed you lies   The Word was written "...so that in [Him] you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart! I [Christ] have overcome the world." (John 16:33)  Knowing God, gives us peace.  Hebrews 12:1 says, "... let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us..." 

I want to have that runner's instinct to translate to my life - I want to keep pushing, even when things are difficult.  Life is going to be hard. But I don't want a boring life, like round and round a track.  I want the course He has planned for me, with it's hills and challenges, so I can enjoy and appreciate the flat stretches. 

He has something greater in store for us!

Transform: Part 1

There are a lot of ways our family is trying to transform these days: wasting less, recycling more, using healthier products in our home, eating more vegetables (kiddos).... but Kyle and I have been on a mission to transform our health and our bodies.

So after going to the SHAKLEE Global Conference in August and hearing some amazing stories, we have committed to transforming with the CINCH inch loss plan. One of the keynote speakers was Jaqui McCoy, who partnered with trainer Chris Powell on ABC's Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition and lost 207 lbs! That was 58% of her total body weight!  Jacqui’s diet and fitness regime were prescribed by her coaches on Extreme Makeover.  Jacqui is also a passionate advocate for Shaklee products and her nutritional needs were supported by her use of Shaklee nutrition, including Shaklee Vitalizer™ and OmegaGuard®.  At the conference, Jaqui shared about how taking these 2 supplements helped her start her weightloss transformation from the inside out - and she has committed to the Cinch transformation pack to lose that last 15-20lbs she wants to get rid of.

And that brings the story back to us - 2 pretty active adults who don't have nearly the challenge ahead of us that Jaqui did, but none-the-less determined to become healthier.  We both have diabetes, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, heart disease and cancer in our family and while we still have time, we want to TRANSFORM from the inside out like Jaqui to prevent these diseases if at all possible.

I thought I'd journal about our transformation journey here on our blog.  So here's where I'm starting:

Cheryl - 154.8 lbs, waist: 35.25 inches, hips: 41 inches

Check back to see our progress!

Mama's getting crafty

Have been thinking about something for our entry way now that we have a new door and a refreshed bench (free curb-side) - here's the bench in the entry

 before

after

So I rummaged up so old frames (many of them for 2x3 photos... who has those?!), painted a floral and gold one black, then inserted letters that I made in Word and printed out on pretty paper. 

Here's my temporary set-up, but I want to buy a mirror and then mount them over the bench!  Will add a final pick when I get it done.

Joshua Thomas is here!

We know this post is long over-due, but what do you expect from a mother of a toddler and a newborn?!!
The first picture is of Joshua, the second picture is my (Cheryl's) baby picture...










Joshua Thomas was born, Saturday, July 11th at 11:34am (9 days before his due date). He weighed 9lbs and 13oz and was 20 1/2 in long. For reference, Jonathan was 10 days early and weighed 9lbs and 12oz and was 21 in long. Joshua's extra ounce might have come from all of the dark hair he has - a lot like Mommy's when she was first born! By the time we left the hospital, Joshua's bilirubin count was high and so we had to have him on the bililight for the rest of the week. His weight had dropped to 9lbs at his lowest point and by his 2-week checkup, he was at 10lbs, 14oz - needless to say, nursing isn't a problem!

We have been blessed that recovery after delivery was much easier this time - which God knew we needed to keep up with a house now with 2 boys. Jonathan seems to be okay with having Joshua around and only really seems jealous or more whiny whenever I'm nursing him or he cries for too long (fortunately, at this point Joshua isn't too much of a crier :o) We have been so thankful for all of the help of friends and family who have provided food and come over to help out - after 4 weeks, I'm not sure I've had more than a couple of days completely by myself with the boys... again, God is good!

Joshua is now 4 weeks old and up to 13lbs. He has been to church, daddy's softball games, playdates and numerous lunch outings. Life hasn't slowed down too much since his arrival :o)

21 months and coming soon!

We wrapped up May with a trip to Indy for Cheryl's cousin's wedding, and then spent the next day at the Zoo. It was a little warm, and Jonathan got tired by lunchtime, but we had fun on our family outing. This was also our little anniversary celebration - 11 years!

Jonathan turned 21 months in June. He loves to run and has started to try to "race" against us by saying, "ready, set, go!". Early in June we enjoyed a raining day at Bloomington's "touch-a-truck" where the kids got to climb in and on various city trucks... including Popaw's! Jonathan thought the survey camera he uses was a choo-choo and was very excited when Popaw made it move back and forth. He is loving music - I think in part to watching "the Backyardigans". He plays his piano, guitar, harmonica and now violin (thanks to our FriendSpeak partners who gave him a child-sized one). When his show is on, he dances around with them and copies things they say and do (I found him "sneaking" like the characters on an episode where they pretended to be secret agents). The next day Kyle was outside with him and when Jonathan saw a bird he started "sneaking" up on it... His antics crack us up - especially when he uses these new-found skills in the correct context!

We're getting closer to our delivery date - the doctor thought I was measuring quite a bit ahead of schedule and ordered an ultrasound. It measured the new baby at 9lbs, 4oz, but the doctor doesn't think he's actually that big. We're still waiting to see how things progress, but not in any hurry to induce. We did finally settle on a name - the ultrasound tech even let us have a profile pic of the baby with his name on the screen... We thought it would be good for Jonathan to be familiar with hearing it over the next few weeks.

Kyle's on hold for traveling until after the baby arrives, so we're getting things done around the house. Bags are packed for the hospital and while his room isn't completely ready, we're okay with it's condition if he comes early. Soon our family will be growing!