23 Pounds Lighter!

Six years ago I was pregnant with our first daughter and I made a promise to my closest friends that we would not let our bodies go after having kids. Little did I know that my husband and I would have three beautiful daughters back to back (all within 3 1/2 years) and the weight would not have time to come off between each pregnancy. But, I made a promise.

On Oct 13th, 2012, I started working out with the weight set in our garage (story here), and on Oct 19th, I was invited to a Pumpkin Boot Camp by an old friend that I hadn't seen in years. I had no idea what that class would do for me. A year and half later, I still attend boot camp three times a week with the same friend that originally invited me and with many other amazing women that I've met along the way. This is more than a time to workout, this is bonding with lifelong friends, genuine support, and a truly unselfish group of women that want to see me reach my goals. I'm forever grateful for these ladies. I love you girls! (If any women want to join me, please let me know. You won't regret it!)

From Oct 2012 to Dec 2013, I lost 11 pounds. I was working out 3 times a week, running 3 times a week, and playing soccer once a week. I even ran my first half marathon in Nov 2013. You would think with all of that activity that I would shed pounds easily, but it just wasn't happening and I knew why. I was still eating the same way. So, after being introduced to Arbonne's 30 Day Challenge (and ignoring its benefits for 8 months), I along with family and friends, finally took the challenge in Jan 2014 and I haven't been the same since. Those 30 days taught me to gain control of my food instead of my food controlling me, and my lack of weight loss. I learned to substitute healthy foods for unhealthy foods, I never felt deprived, and the weight came off. I lost 7 pounds in Jan and the last 5 pounds as I've kept up the 80/10/10 follow up plan. (If anyone wants to join my 30 Day Challenge team, please contact me! Again, you won't regret it!)

Today, a year and a half later, three unexpected surgeries later, and many crazy life changes later, I stepped on the scale and I saw my goal weight. I did it! I'm thrilled! I completed my promise!

Before & After

I've already set new goals and I have no doubt that I will meet them, one day at a time! And, if you're wondering, we chose the top color and we plan to paint soon. Ha!

Ephesians 4:16 - From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

The Lesson Can Wait

I had major surgery 4 weeks ago so I'm suppose to be resting ... which is impossible. I've heeded my doctors warning of not lifting and I sat around a lot the first 3 weeks, but since then I've slowly started doing more work around the house. Today, as I was changing the sheets on our bed, I saw my two year old sneak into her sisters room with a pacifier (aka paci) and close the door. She only uses a paci at nap time and bedtime so I knew that she had taken advantage of me being in the bedroom and she climbed onto the kitchen counter to get the paci out of the higher set of cabinets. In other words, she's in trouble!

Let me backtrack: She was doing this EXACT thing yesterday when she fell off the counter top and almost bit through her bottom lip. Lots of blood. Lots of panic (that was me). No teeth were loose. She was fine. Fives minutes later, I caught her climbing onto the counter top again. Apparently the lesson wasn't learned?!

As I headed down the hall toward her sisters room, I was irritated that she had climbed on the counter again and irritated that I wasn't watching her more closely. I opened the door, rather frustrated, to find her tucked into the bed with her face toward the wall. Instead of reprimanding her, I climbed into bed and snuggled close to her while she faced the wall ... "hiding" the paci from me. I let her enjoy sucking on the paci while I rubbed her back. I then looked at the wall by the bed and saw that her sister had colored a partial smiley face on the wall. Instead of getting mad, I smiled. This time will pass too quickly. The lesson can wait.

Ruth 4:16 - "Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him."

BRCA: Two Weeks Post Hysterectomy

While sitting in the waiting room this morning, I was surrounded by three pregnant women. They looked great. They looked very close to delivery. They looked like something that I will never be again. I'll be honest, a slight sadness set in because I'll never be pregnant again. Don't get me wrong, we never intended to have more kids seeing as my husband got "fixed" a few years ago, but this was the final nail in the coffin. Done. Finished. No more kids. It just took that moment for things to settle in and become more real. I'm good now.

Before entering the exam room, I had a very small ... super tiny ... ok, medium sized ... hope that my doctor would release me to do some normal activity; however, when the nurse walked me in the room and said "since this is your two week check up, you won't have to undress," I knew my chances were slim. Don't they know I'm Superwoman?!

If this surgery has done anything for me (besides saving my life), it's taught me that it's ok to take off my Superwoman cape. It's ok to let others take care of me. It's ok to rest. I'm NOT good at resting and I'm not good at asking for help. Thankfully, I haven't had to ask for help very often because the help has shown up at just the right time, every time that I've needed it. I have an awesome army of friends and family checking on me daily, bringing us dinner, taking my kids so I can nap, having my house cleaned, running to the store, bringing me sweet treats, etc. I'm blessed. I'm VERY blessed!

And, a huge thanks to my husband. He's been MAKING me rest, while he has taken over a lot of the day to day activities at home, after working all day. He's pretty awesome! Again, I'm VERY blessed!

So, as I rest, I'll be thinking about my next check up in two weeks. I'll be longing for the words, "you're released!" Mainly because I want to pick up my kids. Sure, I can hug them on ground level, but it's just not the same. I want to hold them. I also want to run, go to boot camp, play soccer, go to the grocery store, etc, but those are secondary to holding my sweet girls. After all, my family is the reason I went through this surgery in the first place.


Isaiah 58:8 - "Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear..."

BRCA: First Surgery Down!

I had my first BRCA surgery on Monday (4/21), and all went well! I had a complete hysterectomy, which means my ovaries were removed along with my uterus and fallopian tubes. Most hysterectomy's consist of removing the uterus only, but since my family history of the cancer is in the ovaries, my doctor removed those as well. I felt a little anxious a few days leading up to surgery, but I knew that I was being covered in prayer when those feelings subsided the day of surgery. I'll be honest though, when I was wheeled into the operating room and talking with the doctors, I felt a sudden urge to get up and run. And, I could have. But, I knew that wasn't my journey. My journey was to complete these surgeries and to be the healthiest me that I can be for my family in the future. 

I've felt pretty good since surgery, other than the few days that I felt like I had been shot in the abdomen. I never got nauseated and I only felt lightheaded a few times. Praise the Lord! My biggest complaints were the catheter and the air bubble. Oh, the catheter. Apparently, mine wasn't working right and when I realized there was a problem (after drinking about 40 oz of fluids along with a full bag of saline), the nurse couldn't get it working soon enough. I was miserable! Once it was working, I filled the bag. I mean filled - the - bag. So much so, the nurse, my husband, and I were all laughing ... which leads to the air bubble. During abdominal surgery, your body is filled with air to make surgery easier for the doctors. That air bubble has to escape the days following your surgery so the pressure it creates inside you is very painful. Like most people's experience, my air bubble mainly affected my abdomen and right shoulder. The pain in my shoulder was terrible. Laughing made it worse. Which leads me back to the filling of my potty bag. The more it filled, the more my nurse, husband, and I laughed. The more I laughed, the more my shoulder hurt. It was a vicious cycle. They say that laughter is the best medicine, but I believe that I've found the only time in life when that saying doesn't apply. Although, it is funny now that I look back at the situation. 

It wasn't until after surgery, that the magnitude of what I did started to sink in. It finally hit me that I chose to fight. That I chose to take the information that was given to me and to be proactive. To make a difference. So, here are my battle wounds. I will wear them proudly although the nurse doesn't think you'll be able to see much scarring after I'm healed so I'm posting this picture as a reminder of the day that I chose to say No to cancer. I chose to change my future. I won!

Zechariah 10:5 - "Together they will be like warriors in battle, trampling their enemy into the mud of the streets. They will fight because the Lord is with them, and they will put the enemy to shame."

A special thank you to my family and friends that have taken care of our girls while I've been healing. Thank you to everyone for the calls, texts, cards, meals, prayers, gifts, etc. We are blessed beyond measure!

BRCA: Curve Ball

My husband and I first heard this word from the Plastic Surgeon, and neither of us knew what it meant. When I looked it up, I didn't even know how to spell it. This journey has been very educational. Prophylactic is not a word that I ever thought would be in my vocabulary, but now I can properly use it in a sentence. You, my friend, have now been educated on this word so feel free to use it in a sentence today to impress your friends. I challenge you!

My first prophylactic surgery (full hysterectomy) was scheduled for Monday, April 14th. I went for my hospital pre-op on Friday, April 4th. At that visit, I was able to share my BRCA gene results with the Physicians Assistant of Anesthesiologist. She shared with me that her grandma, mom, and other family members had breast cancer. After talking with her for about 15 minutes on some details of my journey, she decided to get tested for the gene as well and she's going to encourage her two sisters to get tested too. What a blessing! It's conversations like that one that make this journey worthwhile!

My OB pre-op visit was last Tuesday. At this visit, I found out that my doctor is off on the day of my surgery so we had to reschedule to Monday, April 21st. Minor detail! The scheduler and my doctor apologized numerous times, and I assured them that it was God's timing, not theirs. Besides, we have a lot of fun events next week, along with Easter next weekend, that I now get to enjoy!

So, that's where we stand. My full hysterectomy will be on Monday, April 21st. My surgery will be robotic so it's the least invasive of the hysterectomy surgery options. I will have five incisions and two of those will be a blind entry so I ask that you pray for an overall successful surgery, no side affects to the surgery or medicine, an easy transition into menopause (be jealous), and for protection over all of my other organs that they not be punctured during this procedure (particularly my bladder, colon, and a tube that leads to one of my kidneys). Amen!

Matthew 18:19-20 - "Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them."

Clean Eating: March Results!

Amen to that! Do you count calories? I have. Do you count points? It can be tedious, time consuming, and not a good indication of what you're actually eating. Do you count chemicals?

Before Arbonne, I had no idea what I was putting in my body. Sure, I ate "healthy," but I didn't read labels. I didn't even know what some of the ingredients in my foods were, and I wasn't doing my body any favors. I was eating for me, for my satisfaction. I wasn't eating to fuel by body properly so that it could perform at its best. 

I'm very grateful for Arbonne. I'm grateful for the 30 Day Challenge that I accepted in January, and for the changes that I still do today. I currently follow the 80/10/10 maintenance program that is suggested after the challenge. I still live gluten, dairy, soy, peanut, and caffeine free 80% of the time. I NEVER thought I would say that since I was a two cups of milk a day - put cheese on everything - pass me a roll - peanut butter eating machine! Sound familiar?!

I'm also grateful for those that said Yes, and that decided to take this journey with me. These people trusted me and my guidance enough to not only accept the challenge, but to truly make life long changes. Each month, I'm blown away by my teams results, and by their contagious attitudes. Our team is full of encouragement! Our team works hard, and we celebrate each others struggles and victories. Every change, big or small, is celebrated because in the end, it's each of those small changes that make a big difference!

Team Results: 

• I had 4 people give me their weight loss results at the end of the month for a total of 31.5 lbs gone! My team member with the highest weight loss percentage was 6.19%! That's amazing! 
• My other team members are either maintaining their previous weight loss, or they're not doing the challenge for weight loss at all, but for the many other benefits of eating healthy. 
• I had 3 people give me their inches lost and that was a total of 13 inches! My team member with the highest number of inches lost was 7.5 inches! Whoop!

Team Testimonials:

• "Day 7. While it's not been easy. I've been surprised by not having that starving feeling I've had in other weight loss programs. This is a mindset change as well as a nutrition change."
• "I've taken what I learned from my month of clean eating, tweaked it a bit for the long haul, and managed to keep the pounds and inches off in March. I may not be 100% 'clean' but I'm probably 80% and have made some real, permanent and most importantly, manageable changes. I'm no longer counting calories, steps or heart rates to quantify my progress. I'm making progress by the way I feel. It's very freeing to no longer be controlled by numbers and gadgets."
• "You've (Arbonne) helped me open my eyes on what I've been eating and feeding my boys! I've lost almost 15 lbs! And I wake up naturally at 5:30am every morning! You've made a big improvement to my life in so many ways!"
• "I've found that cutting gluten and dairy isn't that difficult."

If you are intrigued by this challenge and you would like to know more, please contact me at morrison25@cox.net. I would love to share some information with you so that you can decide if this is the right fit for you. Each of my team members get a Fit Kit Guide, a FREE 4 week menu and shopping guide, a private Facebook support page, and access to a nutritionist. We are here as a team to help you succeed!

Support and Teamwork can be defined in Acts 3:7 - "Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong."

I would love for you to join my current April team, or I can get you prepared for my May team. I believe in you!

Rhea Lana: Sneak Peak!

Today is one of the Consignor drop off day's at the Rhea Lana of Broken Arrow Spring/Summer sale. I love this day, for 2 reasons!

1) I get to drop off the items that I'm selling; therefore, making space in my home for the new things that I will buy at the sale (don't tell my husband I just said that)!

2) I get a Sneak Peak at the awesome items that other consignors have already dropped off!

My car was loaded and ready this morning!

Thanks to Debbie and Kristin, the amazing co-owners of the Broken Arrow RL, I was able to take some pictures to give you a Sneak Peak as well! Here are some of the items that will be available in just a few short days.

Clothes! Clothes! And more clothes! All sizes, all styles, boys & girls!

Toys * Swings * Room Decor * And much, much more!

If you want to see what else they have to offer, then you'll have to get over to the sale at their new location at 71st & County Line (in the old Wal-Mart). Doors open to the public on Sunday, April 6th, at 11:00am. You can see the full event schedule Here.

Questions: Ask me or the Owners themselves - Debbie (debbiew@rhealana.com) and Kristin (kristin@rhealana.com)

Happy Guilt Free Because You're Not Paying Full Retail For High Quality Items Shopping!