Sadness

I'm dreaming of a warm beach... sand to sink my toes into...warm, salty, blue water....a week away from work...and time with a good friend. I was really hoping to take a cruise next month. It was all riding on my income tax return. It doesn't look like I'm going to have enough to go, and that's made me very sad. I'm really hoping to be able to scrape together the rest of the money, but it's not looking promising. I hate living paycheck to paycheck. Just enough for the necessities in life, and no extra for any fun. Sometimes I wish people would have explained this to me in high school-- I so would have picked a different career path.

Weigh in Day--Week 3

This week has been a little more difficult when it comes to my weight loss goals. I had cravings for the first time since starting the diet... and my body feels tired from all the exercise, so my daily exercise routing has been a bit more challenging. Because I had managed my calories so well, the days I had cravings, I just went ahead and got the food. And I was able to stay close to my calorie goals. Yes, I did go over those days, but I think deprivation is the worst, because if you don't feed your craving, you will totally splurge eventually and knock yourself way off your goals. I have exercised every day this week, but I think my body is telling me I need to rest. So today, I took a slow stroll with the dog to the front of my apartment complex and back. it took all of about 10-15 minutes, but I think that's all the exercise I will do today. Oh, and the good news is--I lost 2 1/2 more pounds! So that's a total of 6 in the last 3 weeks! Slow and steady wins the race! I have a very good friend who is a nutritionist, and she's helping me with my goals, so I thank her very much for that. She knows me, understands me, and is not going to make me eat anything I don't like! That's important! I'm hoping to keep up the momentum! If I keep it up, then in another 4 weeks, I will be halfway to my goal! Yay me!

I will all of you luck in your goals! If I can do it, anyone can!

Where in the World?

So, I got to thinking, and just wondering--where do the people who read my blog live? So, do me a favor. I just want to know you stopped by! Please reply to this post with where you live in this grand world. I just would like to know how far this blog reaches. I know that I've had readers from places like Argentina and Australia. So, please leave me a note! And thank you for stopping by my little corner! God Bless You!

New Facebook page

I started a facebook page to show off my photography... Check it out here: Serendipitous Moments Photography .
Eventually I will start a photography blog too!

Weigh In Day

Well, I only lost one pound this week. But, according to the scale, I lost 3 the first week...so that's 4 in two weeks. Not bad! I really hope I can keep at this momentum and not give up. I've got 29 more pounds to lose!

I'm tired of being overweight. I'm tired of not feeling good. I'm tired of being uncomfortable. I want to look in the mirror and feel "Hot"! I want someone to ask me on a date because he is attracted to the way I look, not my personality!! So, I will be working hard on this!

I haven't even wanted anything fattening! I think that's a good thing. No cravings...yet! But I'm sure they're coming. I do allow myself one "cheat" per week. Not cheat day, but cheat meal. And this week's will come on Saturday night. I am so looking forward to that pizza!

You'll notice I have a new header. Thanks to my friend, and fellow blogger, Natalie for the tutorial...Check out her blog here. Anyway, let me know what you think!

I don't really have much to say today...I'm on a hard quest to lose some weight and get healthy...I'm hoping the scale shows me great things this Thursday(week 2). I have been eating healthy, trying to hit 1500 calories or less a day. Haven't quite hit it everyday, but I've come very close, so that should be reflected. I am also trying to exercise everyday for 30 minutes. I bought the Dirty Dancing workout video. Dirty Dancing is my favorite movie, and I love to dance, so it seemed like a perfect fit. And it is! I have so much fun with it, but it does it's job...makes me sweat!

Anyway...
Please hold me accountable. I will try and remember to post my results each Thursday on my blog. I would appreciate any encouragement because it's not easy, and I really want to lose 30 pounds! I have been unsuccessful in the past, but I'm dedicated this time!

Thanks for stopping by my little corner on the Internet!

Amy Inspired, By Bethany Pierce

I seem to be sticking to a theme in my reading lately, and it's not intentional. The book I just finished is called "Amy Inspired". It's about a 30 year old woman, who's looking for inspiration for her writing as well as in her life. Amy is a writer, but to support her dream, she also teaches college classes. She doesn't think she's very good at her "day" job, but you learn, she really is a good teacher. You see this in the story in the way she interacts with her students. Amy is a single woman, who seems to always fall for the wrong guy...we meet her as she ends things with one of these men... and throughout the book, she wants to make sure she's turning the page on this, and headed down the right path. After all, she is 30 and still single. It seems when she finally just stops trying so hard, all her dreams begin to come true...

This was a good book... It took me a while to get into...the first few chapters were pretty slow. But I did enjoy it. I would recommend this book to any 20 or 30 something woman who's still single and trying to find your place in this life.

Bethany House provided me a free copy of Amy Inspired for my honest review.

Prayers Please

Right now, I'm going through something spiritually and emotionally...and I really don't know what's going on. I just feel disconnected from everyone...and I've cried a lot. I've got a lot going on in my head, and I've been praying that God will show me exactly what's going on. So, I'm asking you, my fellow bloggers from all over the world, to please say a prayer for me today. Pray that I will be able to make sense of all of this. Pray that whatever it is, I will become a stronger, better person on the other side. Pray for peace.

A Snowy, Icy Mess

Well this week has been quite interesting. I live in the deep south, and I'm not used to getting snow.
When we do, it's usually only a dusting...2 inches at the most. Sunday night, into Monday, Chattanooga, Tennessee, got eight inches of snow!
I've never seen anything like it.


It caused lots of road issues, and it's just been a slushy mess, as it starts to melt and then freeze over again. Today, I will drive my car to work for the first time, because my apartment complex has been a complete sheet of ice for 5 days! I learned something through all this. I never want to live in a climate where winters are full of snow! Bring on the warmth!

A little reflection

Today my pastor said something in his sermon that got me thinking. He said he always thinks back to what happened last year that changed him forever...and thinks ahead, wondering what will change him in 2011. It got me thinking...what in 2010 changed me forever? I haven't really thought about the end of the year, the beginning of the next, until today. I've been so busy since Christmas. But I believe reflecting on the year past is important to looking toward the future. There are four things that I can think of that, I believe, either changed me, or showed me who I am.


The first was the Haiti earthquake. No, I wasn't directly affected by it, but it did have an effect on me. I work in news, and when something big happens in this world, I can't get away from it, since I work in it everyday. I remember when Katrina happened. I cried for days at the visions of the devastation, the people hurting, the people who died. When I left work, I would not turn on the TV, because I wanted to rest from those images. This time was no different. I ached for the Haitians. I wanted to help them--do anything. I wanted to rescue some of the children left orphaned by the devastation. It reminded me that I am a compassionate person. That I am capable of feeling pain and love for those I've never met. This made a difference in me because it showed me a side to myself that I think I may have forgotten. You don't have to know someone personally to love them. News has made me hard when it comes to feeling, but I still hurt for these Haitians...and when Cholera broke out there, and then a hurricane passed over these people living in tents, I cried all over again...scared for these people who've lost so much.

The other events in my life that made big impacts are personal.

In June, I made a monumental decision. I decided to stay in Chattanooga. I decided, at least for the time being, to make Chattanooga my home. This came about the time I was contacted by a news station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, wanting me to come work for them. The job more than intrigued me. Deep inside, I wanted to go. I love adventure, and the thought of moving to an area of the country in which I've never lived fascinated me. But I started to think about it, and pray about it. I have such great friends here, a great church, and I live in a wonderful city, plus, I like the people I work with. So I decided not to go to Albuquerque, and I decided to renew my contract here in the Scenic City. This was a decision that I believe marked a huge change in my life. I no longer feel the need to "run". Maybe that's not what I was doing. I don't know. For some reason, after my contract has ended in times past, I always decided to leave. It was always a chance for a fresh start. Because I moved so much, I have met many wonderful people...and I love that I am able to keep in touch with many of them. But there's just something about saying my home is in_________. For the first time, when someone asks me where I am from, I don't say "Alabama" (where I grew up). I say I'm from Tennessee.

You know, death is something that changes people. Two very different people, who have played roles in my life, went to their Heavenly reward this year.


My grandmother, Ruth Moore, has been a very big part of my life since the day I was born. We got really close when I was in college. I lived with her for three years. After I left, we would have long conversations on the phone, and we always looked forward to the times we had to visit with each other. We shared books, we shared secrets, we shared our lives with each other. We were like best friends. But this year, she got sick again. Her Ovarian cancer came back, and most of this year my family and I watched her get sicker and sicker, until her body just couldn't handle anymore. The day she passed away, I cried so hard and so much that I literally got sick. But since then, I haven't cried much. Just a few tears here and there. I think I'm just so happy that she doesn't hurt anymore. The hope that we have in Christ is that this life isn't it. There is a wonderful something waiting on the other side. And because of that, I believe she lived her life and now, she's running and jumping and smiling in Heaven. I cherish every moment I got to spend with her.

The other death came just days ago.

A former co-worker of mine had liver cancer that ravaged her body. Susie was just 34 when she went "home". I hadn't seen Susie in five years...since I worked in Huntsville, Alabama. She and I had gotten back in touch, via Facebook, several months before she got sick. Even thought we hadn't been close friends, this really affected me. I think it's because I'm 32...Susie was just a little bit older than me. So young. I think it just really reminded me how short life is, and the importance of living every moment to the fullest. I went to her funeral--her life celebration. It was amazing the people who loved Susie--The people whose lives she touched! Susie was the type of person that made the room sunshine when she walked in. I remember working in the newsroom with her. Everyone could have a negative attitude, but I never heard negativity come out of her mouth. I think we all need to strive to be like Susie. Click here to see more about Susie.

I believe your experiences shape you into who you are. I've been told by some that I'm a much different, better person today, than I was just 10 years ago, and I just hope that I continue to change to be the person I need to be. So, here's looking to 2011. I haven't made any New Year's resolutions, other than I want to get healthy, physically and emotionally. I believe I am well on my way.

In 2011, two friends that are my age got married for the first time, giving me hope that there's still someone out there for me. I moved to a new apartment, I made new friends, I reconnected with old friends, I went on one of the best vacations of all time--a cruise to the Bahamas with a very special friend. And I am much more at peace today than I was a year ago with who I am and where I find myself in life. That's a good thing.

Thanks for sharing life with me, fellow bloggers, and followers of this blog. I hope 2011 is full of blessings for all of you.