Week 3 Peak Challenge Wrap UP

⁶ For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 

Our Scripture for week 3 was 1 John 2:16 and it couldn't have come at a better time. October has been the time of year that I usually fall off the wagon as the CANDY CORN hits the stores. Follow that with the yummies of Fall baking, Thanksgiving and Christmas. I have made a declaration that this year will be different. I have given food way too much power in my life. The reality is that by continuing to make bad choices I am not taking care of the body that the God that I love and serve has given to me. As I watch my children, I realize that their eating habits are a reflection of mine. They are not overweight but prefer sweet things over any other foods. The youngest two are becoming picky eaters and it is a battle some nights because I refuse to be a short order cook, LOL. This challenge has been good for all of us.

I have found myself meditating on the scripture a lot this week as I have had my struggles and victories with cravings. All cravings are not bad. I like what Lysa TerKeurst says in her book Made to Crave that we are made to crave God not food. We require food to live but it needs to be food that will fuel my body and help me to operate at my full potential as I carry out the assignment that the Lord has given to me. My area of weakness has to be sweets. I think about them, I crave them, I plan sneak sessions around them. That my dear friends is idolatry!They are no longer a treat but something that I have used as a stress reliever, a reward, a tummy yummy, etc. To my shame I have also used the children as excuses to buy, make and eat treats.  I can't believe that I just wrote that. I say to myself,"why should they suffer?" The truth is they are not suffering and healthy foods and snacks can only bring healthy benefits to their growing minds and bodies. Confession is good for the soul but sometimes bad for the reputation, LOL. My hope is by talking about it openly, it will keep me aware and accountable.

This week I did really well with the physical portion of the challenge. The children even worked out a few days with me. My oldest was supposed to be my workout partner but she is officially fired after informing me that she will only be working out on Mon., Wed. and Friday, LOL. You would think that after living in my womb, rent-free for 40+ weeks, the least you could do is work out with your mama. SMH!!!

I did experience a victory today. I had to go to town to run errands and I heard the 'you deserve a treat today' voice as I was driving home. I had to stop by the store to pick up a few items and had made up my mind to purchase my beloved candy corn."I was going to share it with the kids after all so it couldn't be that bad", I thought to myself, trying to justify my flesh party. I thought about this week's verse and the verse about how God always provides us with a way of escape ( 1 Corinthians 10:13). I breathed a quick prayer before turning into the store's parking lot. I walk in and there it is that devilish candy corn staring at me. I stop and look at it but  make my way to get the items on my list. I was about to make another round just to browse the cookie aisle ( I can be hard headed sometimes) because at least it's not candy corn right?, LOL. I noticed a lady's hair that was really awesome, so in passing I complimented her and that began about a 10 minute conversation. We began talking about the Lord and healthy hair, teehee. I then told her that I am trying to work becoming healthy mind, body and soul. I know it was the Lord because she said you know, "I was just looking at these cookies and about to buy them but now I won't because of you." How cool is that? We encouraged each other, and parted ways. All I could do was praise Him for rescuing me and allowing me to be a blessing to someone else. Our God truly is an Awesome God. Thanks for stopping by if you read this far. Have an amazing week.

My Living and Healthy Week 2 Wrap-UP(Sparkpeople post)

I am wrapping up my second week in the Living and Active 5 week challenge hosted by Peak 313.com. I am happy to say that I accomplished all of the posted goals. We are challenged each week to memorize a scripture. This week's scripture came from

Matthew 6: 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I love that verse because it reminds me that I am to daily trust God for His provision for my life. This health journey has proven to be a daily battle especially as I lay my addiction to sugar on the Altar each day. Praise God, I feel like I am not craving as much due to prayer and strength to make wiser choices.

We are also encouraged to workout 4 times a week for a minimum of 25 minutes. I worked out each day this week and I feel great. I am noticing a difference in my clothes although I am only down 1 pound on the scale. I will take every loss and count it as a victory. Having more energy and a calm demeanor far outweighs seeing a big loss on the scale.

Speaking of the scale, I have decided to put it away for a while. I have allowed it to be way too important and if I am not careful it will dictate what mood that I will be in for the day.  I will continue to make healthy choices even beyond this challenge, exercise and daily ask for strength. My clothing will give me an indication of whether I am making progress or not. I will also measure each month as a way to track changes in my body.

I have been thinking of my goals as September comes to an end and October is approaching. I really want to continue to workout six days a week. However, I plan to either increase my workout time or get in 2 workouts a day a couple times a week. My nutrition goals are to continue eating more fruits and veggies than starchy carbs and quick processed foods. This will be a challenge but I can do it. I hope to give the tracker a workout this week  . It helps to know how I am doing and it keeps me accountable.

I am becoming a woman who is active and living a life that I pray serves others and brings glory to my creator God. Thanks for stopping by if you took time out to read my ramblings. God Bless!  

Wk 1 Checkpoint Living and Active Challenge

Last week I began the 5 Week Challenge over at Peak 313. My first week went pretty good. We were challenged to memorize Ecclesiastes 4:12
Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.  
Our theme was being Tied together. I am on the Peak 313 Challenge team on Sparkpeople and it really did make a difference. I loved knowing that my sisters in Christ are walking this journey with me. I invited my kids to come along as supporters. They really got a kick out of testing mom on the scripture memory, lol.

Another aspect of the challenge was to workout for at least 25 mins. 4 days a week. I accomplished that by incorporating more movement into my day, treadmill walks and exercise videos online. I didn't do as well as I had hoped to do with my food but I am off to a great start so far this week. To God be the glory. 

So this week we are challenged to memorize Matthew 6:34
³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

We are reminded that we cannot store up anything. We are to go to God daily for provision and trust Him and be thankful for whatever He provides. I love this verse because too often I am tempted to worry. He is the God that is more than enough. Everyday this week i will begin and end my day asking, receiving and thanking God for His daily doses of wisdom, grace and mercy.

My plan is to continue my workouts and hopefully work out for 5 days at least 30-45 minutes each session, including 2 days of strength training. I lifted weights last night focusing on my biceps, chest and back plus abs. Today's workout will be cardio. Tomorrow I will focus on my legs, cardio and abs.

As far as food I plan to incorporate more fruits, veggies and whole grains into my diet. I over did it with sugar last week but I didn't buy any junk on my weekly shopping trip so I should be good to go. I hope to blog about my progress this week here or on my Sparkpeople blog. I am getting stronger physically and spiritually. I am being transformed by His power and His might!

It's time to get fit and healthy!!!

Today begins the Peak 313's challenge. I plan to do this challenge with my 14 year old daughter. It is a win-win situation because she can apply this to her P.E. credit requirement this year and we get to spend more time together.

I went to Peak's website and printed out the work-out schedule along with the verse of the week. I love this week's principle of being tied together.

Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12


I love how Clare points out that our physical and spiritual need to be tied together. So often for me it has been focusing on one at the neglect of the other. I am trying hard to work on balance in my life. God becoming my first priority makes the three strand cord complete. As she pointed out the power lies in the cords being woven together. They are useless if they are beside each other. So I invite Him into this challenge with me and my daughter. Then I know that I can succeed.

Another aspect of accountability for me will be checking in with my SparkPeople group.  Look us up if you have an account and if you don't it is free to join and we would love to have others join us there. We have a great team and I can't wait to get to know the ladies better. I am excited knowing that I am memorizing scriptures with other sisters in Christ.

We are supposed to list our workout plans today. I plan to continue on my Couch 2 5K journey three days a week and working on my abs daily. I really need a lot of work in this area. Six babies, all born by C-section has wreaked havoc on my tummy area. Looking at my sweet beautiful babies makes it all worth it. I really plan to follow some of the workouts listed on Peak 313's site as well. Dvd workouts will help with my strength training work outs.

I also plan to incorporate more fruits and veggies and cut way back on the starchy stuff. That worked for me in the beginning and I am hoping it will work for me this time as well. My eating habits are not terrible but I don't watch my portion sizes as closely as I should and I know that is the culprit in this plateau that I am currently experiencing. To give myself a jump start I plan to start a 7 day green smoothie cleanse on Wednesday.

I pray that I will persevere and I wish all of my sisters much success. I will check in next Monday with my progress. God Bless you all and thanks for stopping by my blog. God truly is blessing my family.

5 Week Challenge with Peak313 Fitness and updates

    It has been a while since my last post. All is well on the home front and I am trying to revive my blog. We moved and were without internet service for a long time. Although I missed surfing the web and reading encouraging blogs the time away gave me a chance to focus on my family. It can become all to easy to spend way too much time reading and not enough time doing, at least for me that seems to be the case so often. I am praying for balance. The children are growing up way too fast for my liking, lol. I now have students in high school, middle school, elementary school, Pre-K and nursery school. This makes for very busy but happy days.


    We started our new school year Tuesday of this week and so far we are off to a great start. Our key word for this school year is Excellence. My husband and I have issued a challenge for ourselves and the children to do better than we did last year. This includes all areas: physical, mental, spiritual and emotional. My number one desire as a wife and mom is to stay in tune with the Father and His will for my life.


    Which brings me to this challenge over at Peak313 Fitness . I have lost a considerable amount of weight(approx. 60lbs.) since I delivered my son in 2010. I have plateaued over the last six months mostly due to my eating habits because I actually like exercise. In my former mommy years I served in the Army Reserve and maintaining physical fitness was a priority. Life happened and like most moms I put myself on the back burner. My pregnancies were welcomed blessings but I did not follow a nutritious diet. I believed the 'eating for two' hype and I still look as if I am carrying a baby, lol. Lord Help me to yield to You and to deny my flesh when it comes to eating the wrong things and overeating in general is my prayer.


   I joined this challenge as a way to jump start my journey again. I like that the challenge includes more than just the elements of diet and excercise but most importantly the nourishing of the spirit man. I hope to update here each week as I apply the principles of this challenge. I would appreciate prayers for strength and self-control. Thanks for stopping by and for praying for me too. Have an awesome weekend. Here's to a living and active lifestyle change (Hebrews 4:12)

Celebrating a day with my Daughter

Happy Birthday to my 4th beautiful baby Israel aka Izzy. She turned 5 today. She loves to play with her babies and talk about being a mommy someday. She is such a sweetie. Her middle name Joy fits her well. She lives up to that name everyday. She is the toughest princess that I know. She takes everything in stride. I only pray that God will continue to give me the wisdom to raise her to Love Him with all her heart, mind, soul and strength. I am so thankful for this little lady being in my life.

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of rigteousness
for his name's sake. Psalm 23:1-3 NIV

We were about to leave for the library and the park and I was rushing the children to hurry up and get in the van. I have to admit that I wasn't the sweet mommy that I should have been and instead had an irritated tone and a stern demeanor. What happened to my joy? When I finally got everyone settled in the van and was starting to leave I saw this horse in the pasture next door.It was such a beautiful sight and I had to get a picture. My plan was to go to story time and have a picnic at the park. It seemed like a brilliant idea in my brain the night before but the morning started out with all kinds of disruptions and things that shouldn't have caused me frustration. What about the perfect day that I planned? Weren't we supposed to go skipping through the park holding hands and singing songs like Sound of Music?

My last two months have been a rollercoaster of emotions as I try to adjust to having a new baby,returning to homeschooling and my dh's ever changing work schedule. I am really behind in my housework and I have been feeling like a failure for not having everything back under control. I hear the Lord whispering to my heart that this is all a part of the plan and I can't do anything in my own strength. I hear the scriptures jumping out at me.

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1Peter 5:6-7

I am so glad that He invites me to come to Him and give Him all of my worries, frustrations, cares and burdens. I need to remember to run to Him even in the midst of my busy day. I am struggling to get a consistent quiet time.Right now it is morning, night or whenever the baby naps lol. Writing out scriptures on index cards has really been a blessing. It helps me during the day kinda like an energy drink or coffee but without the crash  period that follows the caffeine. Maybe I should have taped one to my steering wheel today! I am so glad that my children are forgiving and even more thankful for a God of mercy. We had a wonderful time at the library and park. There really wasn't a reason to rush and I could have planned better the night before. I am learning. Thank you Lord for constantly teaching me that Your Grace is sufficient for me. In Jesus Name, Amen.