I NEED to keep on track.....

November 5th... I have a month and a half until Christmas to feel better than I do now.

We had family photos done this weekend. I was sooo excited Brooke was home and we were finally able to do this! Well, the photographer posted a photo on her facebook page and frankly.... I look like a WHALE! You can really tell I have put on 20+ pounds. It's all in my face and arms. I am extremely discouraged and feel like everyone will look at this and notice. I mean common, you know when you see someone you haven't seen in awhile and you go, "oh wow, they've put on a lot of weight"... Ya, I'm thinking that may be me.

My main encouragement at this point is this picture. I keep looking at it and thinking, "wow, I seriously need to do something about this." This morning my shakes start again!.... again.... I can't help but think that Brooke needs a healthy, happy mom and that my husband deserves a healthy, happy wife.

I'm back!!!!!!

I'm writing to let you all know I am back on program!! I had to stop for a little while. I moved into the Ronald McDonald House to be closer to Brooke and spent 15+ hours at the hospital each day. It became impossible for me to follow any bit of a program. Finally, Brooke came home October 1st!

Now that I have a rhythm going at home that works, I've decided to get right back on track! Today I stepped on the scale and to my surprise, and horror, I weigh the most I have ever weighed in my entire life.... Ever. I'm.... In disbelief. I can't even begin to tell you how I felt staring down at that number. I'm ashamed. I'm going to be a bridesmaid in my sister in laws wedding come April and even if I lost 20-30 pounds I'd be heavier than I want to be. Reality is slowly kicking in. I need to take control over my body and my weight loss goals.

Day #1 (again...) begins today. I commit to this program until Christmas. I can and will do this!

Weekends Suck!

Today is Sunday. I have done really well with Breakfast, Lunch and my snacks. Dinner comes.... and it's the summer celebrations and BBQs and things that make this challenge hard! I have to keep my eyes focused on the prize. My #1 goal is Christmas. I want to look and feel fantastic for Christmas. Then, I have 3 weddings next summer starting in April. Cheating on weekends is going to get me nowhere!! My main goal today is to stay 100% focused on the challenge and staying on track. NO slip ups. I work to hard during the week to throw it all away come Friday evening. COMMON AMY!!

Loving this Challenge!

Day # 4 and you will never believe it, but I already feel better! Even though my weigh in isn't until Tuesday, I decided to jump on the scale anyway. Down 3 pounds in 4 days!!

My routine is perfect. My morning shakes have been delicious! Yesterday morning I made the peanut butter shake with the vanilla mix and it tasted like a reese peanut butter cup! I usually have 1 or 2 chews mid morning while at the hospital visiting Brooke. I'll bring my shaker cup with me filled with vanilla shake mix and a taste twister. I'll go to the NICU lounge and fill it with water, shake it up and drink it on my way home for lunch. Yesterday I had orange and it was so good! And I'm not usually one to like orange. On the drive home I'll have another 1-2 chews or a bottle of water with a fizz tab or a piece of fruit. It has been nice to enjoy a full cooked meal at dinner. After dinner is a cup of Arbonne detox tea and then bed! I've been in the NICU for almost 4 months and I should have started this routine a long time ago! I can feel such a change in my body. Something I can do for me :)

If anyone else is doing the Arbonne challenge, I did feel extremely hungry the first day. It was hard! But as the days have gone by my body has adjusted and I feel awesome! Keep going!!!

Day #1!

Day #1 Complete!

I started my morning off with a bottle of water and a pomegranate fizz tab. For breakfast I made a delicious Strawberry Banana shake in my magic bullet. While I visited Brooke I had 2 Arbonne chocolate chews. Lunch I brought my Arbonne shaker cup and had a pina colada flavor packet. It was amazing! I went into the lounge at the hospital and mixed my drink together and drank it on the road. Dinner tonight was chicken, veggies and brown rice. After dinner I sat on my back deck and had an Arbonne detox tea. Ben and I actually curled up and watched some TV tonight and I had another fizz tab which saved me from snacking.

I'm not going to lie, today was harder than I though! I was hungry and seemed to crave crapy foods all day long. I don't understand why I was sooo excited to do this, and the first day I start I struggle. I managed to stay on track and follow program today but it wasn't easy!! I'm hoping tomorrow is a lot easier.

It's Here!

My Arbonne Box arrived today!!! Which means.... Challenge begins tomorrow!

When I opened the box I felt like a kid on Christmas morning. I'm pumped to start this challenge!!!
I went out and got all the essentials I need for my shakes. I also found recipes in the "30 Day Guide" book. Peanut Butter Shake, Very Berry Shake, Banana & Berry Fruit Shake, Orange Creamsicle Shake, Coffee Shake, AND Pumpkin Spice Shake! Plus one of the ones I always enjoy, Strawberry Banana.
Tomorrow morning is weigh in! (Oh no....)

Little Bump in the Road...

Hey Everyone!

I had a great weekend which started off with my first baby shower! It was amazing to see all our friends and family attend to celebrate Brooke. We are very blessed!

Now for my challenge update... Turns out my Arbonne items wont be arriving tomorrow. I'm a bit disappointed because I really need to start this challenge but I will be patient. I've used this weekend to create a grocery list filled with all the recommended Arbonne foods. I've also made a list of all the shakes I'd like to try! I'm not 100% sure when the box filled with my items will arrive, but I sure hope soon! The one item I added to my list last minute was Arbonne's new water bottle. I have never been good about drinking all my recommended water so I purchased the bottle hoping it will keep me motivated every time I look down and see the Arbonne label printed on it.

I will keep you updated when my things arrive and when the challenge finally begins!

Let the Challenge Begin!

Hello All!

Today I have made the commitment to join Arbonne's "30 Days to Feeling Fit" challenge!

3 months ago my husband and I welcomed our beautiful little girl, Brooke, into the world. Brooke was born at 24 weeks and has spent almost 100 days at the NICU. Between traveling back and forth to the hospital, meetings with doctors, nurses, caring for Brooke, trying to keep a clean and organized house and trying to be a good wife, I have lost myself. I have lost control over my healthy eating habits and over my weight. The stress that has come over me in the past couple of months on top of not feeling great about myself, has been very hard on me. I have always struggled with my weight but I have always wanted to be a fit and healthy mom too.

Monday, August 20th, 2012 starts my 30 day challenge. I have made a decision to create this blog to share my journey as I go day by day in my attempt to get fit and feel better about myself and to get support from you!

The first step I made was to purchase the 30 Day Fit Kit from my Arbonne consultant. The thing I am most looking forward to is finally getting into a schedule that will work for me while going back and forth to the hospital AND something that will work for me when Brooke finally comes home too. The other thing I am excited about are the Arbonne shakes. Not only is it totally convenient for my lifestyle right now, but they are super tasty! My life suddenly went from being able to spend time in the kitchen preparing healthy meals... to needing to grab something and go!

I will do my best to share pictures, post comments and share my progress throughout the next 30 days. Feel free to post encouraging words, recipes or if you are on the Arbonne challenger too... shake recipes or things that have worked for you!

Day #1 starts Monday!!!