McFatty Monday Update

Well readers, I am back. I took a couple weeks off from my blog while my family was moving. We are all moved in to our new place and getting unpacked. It was a lot of hard work but we made it through and love our bigger place. I have to say it was difficult to stay on the Weight Watchers Program during this time. We did not fill our kitchen in a normal fashion since we would have to move it. We ended up in a drive-thru much more than I would like to admit. I did try my best to order food that is better for me but there are not too many choices at fast food joints. 

I stayed the same weight the last two weeks which is great because that means all the "not so great" food I ate was counter balanced by all the exercise I did during the move.  I am not sure how many stairs I climbed but I am sure that helped me not gain any fast food weight.

I must say that we are entering my favorite time of the year! I love fall and all the bounty it brings. One of my favorite foods of the fall is apples. I know we can get apples all year but they taste so much better during the fall. There are so many things you can do with apples besides just eating them for a yummy snack with some cheese. I love to make applesauce, saute them and serve with pork and bake them with cinnamon (its a great dessert). Here in Colorado we have hit the best apple season of them all...Honeycrisp apple season. If  you have never tried a Honeycrisp apple, you need to find one at your local store or email me and I will mail one to you. They are the best apples I have ever tasted, they taste like candy because they are so sweet and they are as crisp as a Granny Smith. 

I hope you all have a wonderful week and be sure to try all the wonderful apples that are out there during this wonderful harvest season!!

Check Out My Guest Post

Today I am featured as a guest blogger on my friend Censie's blog. Check out my post here.
Be sure to follow her blog while you are there for a visit!

Y3W - Where Were You?

This weekend is the 10th anniversary of the tragic event of 9/11/2001. I am sure everyone reading this can remember where they were when they heard about this tragedy. This is my experience from that day.

It was a sunny Tuesday morning, I did not have to work that day but I got up with my boyfriend (now hubby) and saw him off to work. When I am home during the week I love to sit and drink my coffee while watching the Today Show. This is exactly what I was doing when there was "Breaking News" and they began to share the news that a plane crashed into one of the World Trade Center’ s towers. The first reports were that it was a small plane, because how could anyone imagine it was a commercial airliner that crashed in to that building. The Today Show kept showing live shots of the building and all the black smoke billowing out of the gaping hole the plane left. Then there was chatter about how large the hole was and how could a small plane make that large of a hole.  Then the unspeakable happened. While watching a live feed of the first tower and the smoke, another plane came into the shot and crashed into the other tower. At that moment my heart dropped. I could not believe I was seeing this. I immediately called Brian and told him what was happening. After I hung up the phone I heard someone on the TV say, “These seem to be intentional.” At that moment I knew my life would change forever.

In September 2001 we lived in Aurora, CO, a suburb of Denver. In Aurora is an Air Force base called Buckley Air Force Base. This is the place that the President lands when he is visiting Colorado and it is quite a large base. We lived about 1 mile from this base and about 10 minutes after the second plane crashed in NY I could hear all the fighter jets begin to take off from the base. Our apartment was in the direct flight path of these jets and we would often hear them during training missions but that day it was different. I was so worried because Colorado is quite important to our nation’s security. We have several military bases and we are home to NORAD. I kept calling Brian to give him updates at work and to see what he was reading on the internet at work. While my day was going on I heard the other reports of the planes that hit the Pentagon and Flight 93 that crashed in the field. I heard how they were going to get all other planes out of the air for fear there were more that could be hijacked. Then came the horrible moment when the first tower at the WTC fell. I watched it live on TV and sat in my living room and cried. I could not believe these things were happening in America. This stuff does not happen here, we are America, we are not a 3^rd world country and how could this be happening? I could not take my eyes off the TV that day; I wanted to know everything about this story. Why was this happening? Who would do this? What was going to happen now?

I was so happy when Brian got home that day. I just wanted to be with him and hold him. This is the first time in my life I felt scared to live in my country and I did not like that feeling. I had talked to my mom several times that day as well and no one could believe what had happened. In the days following, I still could not get enough of the news reports that seemed to go on all day and all night about this horrible day. I saw people walking around with photos of their loved ones they were looking for, that brought sorrow to my heart. I saw the video of how first responders had pulled another person out the rubble alive, that gave me hope. I heard that friends of our family lost a loved one in the WTC. He was FDNY and most likely perished in one of the towers when it fell. My heart still aches for this family to this day. I can’t imagine how they must have felt that day or how they still feel each year as the anniversary comes and goes.

Each year Brian and I seem to be glued to our TV when there is shows on that remember that day. This seems to be a way for us to commemorate the events and remember those who were lost during those events. It is hard to believe it has already been 10 years. I urge everyone to take some time this weekend and reflect on the events of that horrible day, be thankful for your family, hug your kids extra this weekend and be thankful for the great country we live in. GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Children are a gift

I know that all the people who read my blog know that children are a gift and I also know that most rational people in the world know that children are a gift. This blog entry is about all the asshole parents out there that treat their kids like a burden in life.  As some of you know, I work at a non-profit that has a school and residential center for children who have been abused and neglected.  This is not the easiest place to work at times. Luckily I am in the fundraising department and I don't often have to witness the anger and anguish the children we serve go through.

Today was one of the days I am reminded why I work here. There was a little boy crying and and yelling in the hallway outside my office. The kids often yell and scream because they don't get their way or someone made them mad, just like all kids, but thier reaction is amplified. This happens more often than I like to say but today sounded different. The boy in the hall today sounded like his heart was broken, he kept repeating that he wanted to go home with her. I decided to ask someone why he was having such a hard time. I was told he was upset because his mother did not show up to visit him today for thier therapy session. I can't imagine how hurt that boy felt but you could hear it in his voice.

Since we serve children from age 5-18 I often see a child that is the same age as my son and that is always hard for me. I can't imagine my little man being in a place like this, not tucking him in each night, not hugging him each day, not talking to him about his day. I know I have blogged about Ethan's behavior and there are days I am at my whits end with him but I know in my heart that there is no greater gift than my son and I just wish all parents felt the same way. I would gladly give up my job (becuase there would not be any need to fundraise for the kids) if all the parents of our kids here would just know what a gift thier children are and step up and be a real parent. Don't forget, everyone can make a difference in the life of a child. If you are a parent, hug you child extra tonight. If you are not a parent, maybe try volunteering to read to a child or sit with a sick child in the hospital. I promise your life will be enriched just as much as thier's.



My All Time Favorite Picture of My Gift!



Movin' on Up

We're movin' on up!! Last year my hubby and I made the move from Parker, CO to Castle Rock, CO. Because my hubby had been laid off for quite some time we moved into an apartment that is lower rent based on your income. Since then Brian has gotten a job and now we have to move out of this apartment because we don't qualify so now we are moving. Thank goodness we were able to find another apartment in the same complex. 

The best part is we get to move into a bigger apartment, the worst part is, we still have to move. We still have to pack everything, and move it and unpack it. 

This is never a fun task for anyone, but it is even worse when you are attempting to do this with a 5 year-old in the house. He wants to help so much, but as you can imagine, there is only so much he can actually help. This leads to more arguments than I care to have with my little man. I am so glad we decided to save the packing for this week and have it a bit concentrated and not spread it out more than we needed to. I know we will make it through this move, however, we may not all be friends at the end...hahaha...just kidding!

McFatty Monday Update

Last week you might have noticed I did not do a McFatty Monday Update. The biggest reason is, I did not attend my meeting or weigh in last week. The last two weeks I have been off track. I used my cousin's wedding as my excuse, but really I could have kept on track better during those weeks.  I did find myself keeping on track much better at work since I typically don't eat any food that I don't bring with me. There is the occasion when we have extra food at work but I can often fend off the need to eat it. My problem is and has always been, my eating at home. I have boys in my house that never gain weight, no matter what they eat. My hubby has quite a sweet tooth and likes all the goodies that made me fat; Little Debbie Snacks, Cookies, Ice Cream and candies. I try to keep snacks in the house that make me feel like I am cheating but are good for me, FiberOne Brownies are my newest love! When my boys are eating their Little Debbie goodness, I am eating my FiberOne yummyness. 


So the verdict when I went to weigh in on Saturday was, I gained 2 pounds, which I have to say, was not as much as I was prepared for. I thought for sure I had gained 3-4 pounds. That day, I did head to the grocery store and made sure I filled my fridge with all the stuff I need to help keep me on track. I just might be too busy this week to actually get off track. I am so busy at work this week and we are packing our house to move next weekend so I may just keep myself preoccupied and not think about the yummy, bad-for-me things I want to snack on. The other great thing is, the weather in Colorado is getting much cooler and taking longer walks with the dog and kiddo will be back in the routine. 

Have a Happy and Healthy Week!!!!

Y3W - Evil Social Media

As much as I love social media, just like most of the world now, I have to say there is a little evil part to it. As many of you know, I was married once before. It was not a very amicable split, I was the one who initiated the breakup and worked through a lot of guilt for a very long time to make my peace with that situation. With that being said, I have to say I was quite freaked out on Thursday when I received a message from my ex-husband on Facebook. I was not even sure if I wanted to read the message. I felt a bit violated when that message appeared on my page. I went ahead and opened the message and read it. He wanted to know if I still had photos of him or his family and if so could I mail them to him. I quickly responded and let him know I did not have any. Once I got home that night I shared the message with my husband then deleted it and blocked my ex. 

I often feel like people can be found and stalked too easily on Facebook. Not that I think my ex was stalking me, but since we have one mutual friend from college, I have no idea how long he was looking at the little bit of information he could see on my profile. You just never know who is out there looking at your life through the social media outlets. 

I feel much better that I have him blocked and he should never be able to send me a message or even see if I post on our mutual friend's profile. It has been more than 10 years since I have seen or talked to him and those few typed words rocked me a little this week. It brought up feelings of guilt that I had gotten past a while ago. I am so grateful for a wonderful, supportive and understanding husband now!!

What are Your 3 Words?