Long Overdue Update

It's been a while since I have shared and a lot has changed. Let me fill you in on what is new.

Find this and many other fabulous designs at One Little Bird Studio

After years of looking and a lifetime of dreaming, the hubs and I have bought our first house. It is a beautiful little house here in Topeka with plenty of room for the boy to play and the dogs to run. We officially became home owners last May and after a month of taking down wallpaper, refinishing floors and painting we moved in at the beginning of June. We are mostly settled in now, though we still have a list of projects to complete around the house and a few wayward boxes waiting to be unpacked. But we are home and we absolutely love it. After living here for seven months now I still find myself pausing and just thinking about how much I absolutely love this house. Getting here was not easy, we looked at so many houses and we went through some disappointments during the search for our new home. In hindsight now it is easy to see that all of those disappointments happened so we could end up here. Today I am grateful, going through it I was so bummed. I always think I have life figured out and then another lesson comes along and reminds me that I still have no idea what I am doing. :)

Behold, our Booty Dog

 Our family has grown by one big, black dog. Ophelia came to live with us when she was just three months old. We named her Ophelia because of her big sad eyes and our love of books. At the time, she was a little fluffy puppy that had an extra amount of fluff on her rear end which earned her the nickname "Booty Dog". Now the most effective way to call her is to shout "Booty Booty Booty!", she will come running every time.

I have a new job!

This past November I started working for St. Francis Health and I absolutely LOVE IT. Everyone I have met there is so great. And my boss is simply fantastic to work for. The project load can be challenging at times but that is part of what makes it so satisfying. Being challenged means I am growing and learning as a professional and that is exactly what I want to do. We have been patients of St. Francis for years, From the hub's stay in the PCU, his cardiac event and my hysterectomy have all been with St. Francis. Now I get to be a part of the team that takes care of patients and makes sure that your visit to St. Francis is a good one. I am just over the moon.  

Another outstanding thing about working at the hospital is that there are some side effects that are changing my life in a positive way. Working healthcare makes you really think about your own physical health. Plus the long halls and various objectives means I am up and walking quite a bit during my day, more so than I have in years. As you can imagine, these factors have contributed to a fantastic change in my lifestyle...

Awwwww Yeahhhhh!!!

For the first time in three years I am starting to see real results! When I started at St. Francis in November I weighed in at 304 pounds. Yes, the horrible 300 mark was not only hit it was surpassed. In November I had serious back pain, a knee that was constantly swollen and sore, foot pain and I was winded if I exerted myself at all. Nearly three months later I am down 20 pounds, my aches and pains have all improved and while I still get winded when trying to keep up with my colleges in the hallways, I am able to go a lot longer and a lot faster than before. It's not a major loss to report BUT it is a HUGE step in the right direction. Hubs has gotten on board too and has been dropping weight and thinning out quite a bit. He is fantastic about fixing us healthy meals at home so we are not constantly loading up on junk food. One thing that has been motivating him is the PBS special In Defense of Food which is a very good watch and I highly recommend you check it out. 

Check out In Defense of Food

So I can now say that 20 pounds of Bertha have been removed. Here's to continued Bertha removal. It feels so good to be getting back to progress. Knowing now how very hard it is to get back on track once I slip I am going to do my very best to stick with it this time. I may have some days that are not as good as others, but I can't have weeks that are consistently bad. I have to make the effort to make this a permanent lifestyle change. Right now it is nice to have some good news to report. It feels great. 

Thanks for reading! 

Martie