Weight Loss this Month

207 even. That means I have lost ten pounds this month. I am beyond thrilled with that. I have not started excercising yet. Unless you call painting and organizing excerxise. 

  Today I look at the big picture and the big picture is that I lost 10.5 pounds my first month. That is great. 

  I am learning some things like I really need to work on a menu and stick to it. It makes cooking easier and gives me something to look forward to instead of something to dread. 

   Pamela

Feeling Beachie

The statements: 1) Have you _filled your taxes yet___? 2) Aussie____ is my favorite _hair ___ product, I have used it since high school because my husband loves the smell. 3) I like _Dominos___ but prefer papa john’s when I am going to splurge on ice cream.__ 4) Social media _has changed how we live and how our children are raised. _____

Thankful Thursday

What a week, oh wait we are over a week now. It started last Wednesday when my son passed out in the bathroom. He was dehydrated and had strep. That turned into three other kids being treated for strep. On Saturday night it hit me. I do not think anyone told this cold that moms are not allowed to get sick. On Monday another child got the cold. On Wednesday another child had to be taken back to the doctor and he now has croup. I did not realize big kids got croup. I did learn something. The doctor said putting him in a steamy bathroom was great. He then said another way to handle it is just to wrap them in a blanket and take them outside in the cold for a couple of minutes. As much as I would like to set and complain it could so be worse. We have great health insurance when we need it and amazing oils to help us stay healthy. The baby is healthy and we have a warm house that we do not have to leave. Do you think my week has been frustrating? You should hear about my husbands. He had to go away for work for a few days. Or at least it was only suppose to be a few days. This is how it has gone so far. He arrived Monday to realize the sprinkler system was frozen (hello it is 66 degrees there). So Monday he was able to work about 3 hours before they came in and said they were shutting post down for 2 days because of weather. So he sets in his hotel for two weeks. He goes back to work today only to find out the electricity is not working. They were finally able to work this afternoon. I am curious, do you think he will ever be able to finish his job and come home. To keep me laughing my husband sends me pictures of his amazing hotel and the amazing meals they are serving him and I send him pictures of what the kids are breaking. I think that is a good compromise.

The Eyes Are Moving

Okay I seriously did not get a hour of sleep last night. We have four kids down sick. Baby boy woke up because of monsters in his bed. So I brought his blanket and pillow into my room. Again he started screaming. He said," the eyes are moving"'. It was honestly hard not to laugh because he has slept with this pillow case for 2 years. 

The eyes are moving, the eyes are moving. 

Sibling Baby Wearing

I love how this beautiful girl wants to help me. I walked in the other day and she had the baby tied to her. So I taught her how to use the Ergo. I may never be able to hold my baby boy again. 

Bad Bread

Yuck is a understatement. I found this partial loaf in a Tupperware that had food from the move in it. That means this bread was over a month old and still looks normal. This may be exactly why I do not like buying store bought bread. 

Pamela

Dressing himself

Someone is dressed for church. Sadly it is not a church day

Dressing himself

Someone is dressed for church. Sadly it is not a church day

Feeling Beachie

The statements:  Seeing older children in foster care____ always makes me __wonder if we will ever be in a place to adopt older children__  If one song represents how I feel right now it is ___so tired, so so tired, is that a song if not I am making it one_________.  In 2013 my biggest challenge was __carrying a pregnancy to term________ and made me _stop and relax more and let things go_________  I feel _grateful I did not make one_______ about making New Year’s resolutions.

Wordless Wednesday

Mom he was cold

Weight Loss Journey

Not a great week in the weight loss department. I lost 1.5 pounds. So I am thrilled to have a loss but my eating was not great. It started with a ice cream birthday cake that I had three days in a row. I also did not keep up with my water like I should have. This is a journey and I am grateful to be alive and part of it. This is a new week and I started it with hot oatmeal and a large drink. I hope you are having a great week and keeping your goals in mind. Don't forget you can follow me myfitnesspal and on facebook. Pamela

Journey Through Deployment

I recently had the opportunity to read a book on deployment. You would think with eight deployments under our belts I would not want to read a book about deployment. Let me tell you about this book. This is a basic how to book on deployments. This book talks about things to look forward to and things to prepare for. I love how this book is encouraging but honest about what to expect. I think this would be a great book to give as a gift for someone who is about to go through their first deployment. Or even someone like myself who thinks they know it all. You can find the book on Amazon. If you would like to know more about this amazing author you can visit her blog Singing Through The Rain. Pamela

Feeling Beachie

The statements: 1. Don’t you love when you get to spend __the entire week at home without appointments. ___ 2. I wish there was a were _robotic maid___ but I would settle for __a human who comes a couple times a week__. 3. When I hear the word __foster care__ I always think of _open hearts___ 4. My dream _job _ is __opening a bed and breakfast with a bakery attached__

Pamela

Switched on School

Starting school early. I think he is excited about English. 

My Weight Loss Journey

I am down 5 pounds this week. I am pretty excited about that loss. I did okay but not great with eating. Snacking was harder than I thought. It will get easier the longer I go. I have to remind myself this is a lifestyle I am getting use to. 

  Remember you can follow me on myfitnesspal and Instagram as trooppetrie

Pamela

Feeling Beachie

The statements: 1. I have been a mom for 17 years____ so if I __say I have lost my mom, believe me.___ 2. I don’t like _when my dog chews on the kids toys all the time____. 3. I easily can _get 7 kids up and dressed and out of the house in 15 minutes_____ in something I _say is appropriate to wear.___ 4. I never thought, I would love not leaving the house but___ after ___6 days I wish I did not have to leave for another 6 days___

Guinea Pig Pedicure

Do you cut your guinea pigs toe nails? 

Sadly I wrote this post before our beloved guinea pig died. Pamela

Floor Time

This baby boy is three months old. I can hardly believe it. He is everyone's play toy. I have been worried because he does not get much time on the floor. Between the kids and the dog and add to that we have had boxes every where he is constantly being held. 

 That changed today and he had lots of time to stretch out and he showed me that he is doing great. 

  Thank you to everyone who reminded me that in some countries babies are never laid on the ground and that baby wearing builds the same muscles. 

 Okay back to snuggling a baby. 

Pamela

He Can Smile

Do you remember me being worried that he was not smiling? He has proved me wrong on a daily basis and loves to smile. 

  He definitly smiles more for his big brother but sometimes he will surprise me with a smile.

Pamela

Feeling Beachie

The statements: 1. Is it really _possible my son will turn 18 this year, I do not think it is allowed. ___? 2. I am the opposite of _skinny right now but plan on changing that this year, AGAIN___. 3. Saying _good-bye___ is hard for me, and sadly over the last month I have done it to much. 4. I My favorite pastime is _baking__because it allows me to__relax and give to others which are two things I enjoy doing. _ Pamela

How to Pay it Forward

Don’t laugh but there are a few things that are important to me in the delivery room. The first is that I have new socks that look really clean and second that I have a recent pedicure. I don’t know why this is important to me but it is. So recently I was getting my pedicure and a lady who I had not even spoken to walked over to me and handed me a gift certificate. The place was super busy and every chair was full yet this lady walked over and handed me a gift certificate. It reminds me of how much I want to pay it forward. It does not have to be anything big. Maybe drop off snacks at the fire department or to the therapist that help my children. How do you pay it forward? Pamela Pamela

Nap Time

Grace thinks she can take care of the baby. Technically they share a room but Jacob has not moved in there yet. Grace thought taking him in her room for a nap was a great idea. And you know what it worked out perfectly. She got the quiet time she needed and he got a nap.