Month of Gratitude Continued

Day 6: Today I am grateful for my sweet little man, Steven. He is such a silly, sweet, helpful, energetic, imaginative boy & I am so grateful to have him in our family!

Day 7: I am so grateful for my amazing sisters & mother: Myrna, Heather, Lisa, Ginelle, Sammy, Deborah, Mary, & Janelle.

Day 8: today I am grateful for all of the great women in my life who are almost like sisters  (I tried to tag these ladies yesterday, but I guess it won't let me tag more than a certain amount) Amanda, Jennifer, Kim, Lisa, Jen & Savanah

Day 9: today I'm grateful for beautiful Fall days! I love Fall, it's probably my favorite season 

Day 10: After watching the Primary Program at church, I am reminded how precious, wonderful, & insightful children truly are. I am so grateful that I have been blessed to be a mother & I am also equally grateful that I have been able to help give that gift to two other women through surrogacy.

Day 11: I am so grateful for all the amazing men & women who are serving & have served in our military to keep our country safe. THANK YOU!

Day 12: today I am grateful to have married into such an awesome family. I met Joshua's family on our second & third date & for a while said,"I'd marry him just for his family!" And a special thanks goes to my father-in-law Steve, who has treated me like his daughter from day one 
Day 13: I am so grateful that I have such amazing brothers! They are the best! Don, David, Marcus
Day 14: I am grateful for technology, especially the ability to keep in touch or reconnect with people that are no longer [geographically] close to me. I also love that we can use things like Skype or FaceTime to make video calls with people who are far away. Remember when we thought video calls were super awesome things of the future?
Day 15: today I'm grateful for books. I don't get to read as often as I used to, but I love getting carried away in a good story & falling in love with the characters.
Day 16: today I'm grateful for the amazing people I've met through my surrogacy journeys, especially my fellow surro mamas. I'm grateful for the things I've learned, the times we've shared and because I met two of my best friends because of surrogacy. — with Amanda and Jennifer.
Day 17: I'm grateful that I have family (on both sides) that lives close to me. I love it when we get to do family dinners!
Day 18: I am grateful that my mom & sisters (especially Heather) taught me how to cook & bake & passed their love for it on to me. It has served me well as an adult.
Day 19: I'm grateful that Joshua works so hard so that I am able to stay home with my kids. I am grateful that if I choose to go to work it is because I want the job, not because I HAVE to work.  
Day 20: today I'm grateful for music. It really is so powerful & can make you feel so much. I love that music can make me feel better. About to put that to good use & go have some fun at Zumba. I'm going to be 15 minutes late, but I need the endorphin boost tonight.
I'm also grateful for yesterday.
Day 21: I'm grateful for modern conveniences like my dishwasher, fridge, washing machine, stand mixer & magic eraser. I'm also grateful that my kids still like to help me clean!
Day 22: I'm grateful to be alive & have the life I have.
Day 23: today I am grateful for all my loving family & friends! And I am also so grateful for all the sweet birthday wishes yesterday! Thank you guys so much! I feel truly loved!

Month of Gratitude

For each day in the month of November, I'm going to try to post something I am grateful for. So far I have done every day! (I'm so impressive; I've done 4 whole days!) I have been posting on Facebook, so I'll probably just keep posting on there and then copying it to here.
Day 1: I know it's technically tomorrow, but I'm going to count this for the 1st because I haven't gone to sleep yet. Today I'm grateful for my body. No, not in a weird, creepy way, but as in I'm grateful for the amazing machine my body is. I'm grateful that I have no major physical ailments & that I am overall healthy. I'm grateful that my body allows me to walk, run, dance, & play with my kids. I'm grateful to my body that it can heal itself & that it has the power to bring life into this world. It really is a beautiful thing.
Day 2: I'm grateful for my car. It's not my dream car, and buying gas for it sucks, but it's paid off & it's in pretty good condition. I'm grateful that it is reliable & gets me where I need to be. I'm also grateful that we are able to afford two cars so I'm not stuck inside all day :)
Day 3: Today I am grateful for prayer; for the power it has to give me comfort & answers.
Day 4: Today I am grateful for my wonderful husband and father of my children, Joshua Pendleton! He is a 
great man & a great match for me! I'm so glad you were born! I love you & Happy Birthday!

Day 5: Today I'm grateful for my baby girl, Sofia. She is such a sweet girl and a little devil. I'm grateful for her funny personality, cute voice, huge hugs, and the times and days that I get to spend with her, one-on-one.

Weight Loss Update

Well, it's the beginning of November so it's time to update on my weight loss. 

There's not really much to report, actually. As of November 1st, I am 3 pounds lighter that I was at the beginning of October. Not too happy about that. I actually did lose 4 1/2 pounds in about 10 days at the end of October, but that's because I had gained some before losing it again. So net total loss during the month of October: 3 pounds. Yay.

I'm really trying not to get too frustrated, but it's hard not to. Last week I worked out 5 or 6 times (Sometimes I do a morning and evening class, but I can't remember if I did that last week), and that has been the typical amount that I've been working out lately. I am trying to really watch what I eat and keep track of it. What helped me lose those 4 1/2 pounds in about 10 days was not eating anything after dinner. I think that really did help. 

My measurements have gone down a bit and I have noticed that my jeans are feeling looser. That helps me know that all of this isn't a complete waste of time! ;)

I switched birth controls and it didn't seem to make much of a difference, so it probably wasn't that after all. Maybe it's something hormonal (like my thyroid's out of whack) or maybe it's just harder for me to lose weight after my most recent pregnancy. I don't know. All I know is that all I can do is try my best and live with the rest. Hopefully this month will be better!

October 1st

November 1st