Happy Almost Holidays...happenings in our lives

Hi, Blogging World. I'm still here. Just positively hurried and most thoughts are quotes from the kids, inspirational thoughts, or those "get off your booty and just do it" thoughts.

We are currently participating in what school age children call "drive your mother insane" week...er, I mean, Christmas Break! All is good on the home front. But I do have one child on the mend from a tonsillectomy just less than a week ago. He doing okay for the most part. We have good minutes, bad minutes. Good hours, bad hours. Daytime is usually the easiest. Nighttime is not for the faint of heart. I'm struggling. We are still on medicine dosing every 2.5-3 hours. It's the only way that he can rest...even though, he doesn't care for my waking him up to drink and take "yucky medicine". I'm so thankful for fellow mommy friends who gave me a heads up on the real time events after a tonsillectomy. Whew!!

In addition to the child on the mend, I have a 4 year old who is not great at sharing the one on one attention from her mother with her siblings. And an 8 year old vying for my full attention and more times than not getting what remains.

I did get to enjoy this afternoon. My sister volunteered to watch Kota and the princess. And Lily and I were able to go to the gym and get a little extra Christmas shopping finished. It was nice to spend that one on one attention with her. She hasn't really received the attention she needs with her brother recovering.

We hit up the Dollar Tree and purchased a few odds and ends. We tried on Santa hats and she picked out some Santa hats for her siblings. Then we did a quick run into Target for some muffin mix (in hopes that brother will eat them) and an Icee treat. Yes, Lily and I had a good time.

I remember getting one on one time with my mom. It was usually on grocery shopping trips. I loved going with her and trying to sneak one $.50 bag of candy into the shopping cart. Sometimes I could. Most times I couldn't.

So, here we are drawing closer to Christmas and the close of 2015. 2016 is so close I can taste it. I am pleased with all that has been accomplished in 2015. It's been a good year. Yes, I had knee surgery and will possibly have another procedure next week.(yikes!! but that's the joy of adulting...making difficult decisions based on insurance deductibles) I love being active and if the issues with my knee will hinder that..and it can be fixed. Let's do it! My goal this year was to come back from an ACL reconstruction and run part of a 5K in March 2016. The likelihood of that happening...the running part...are very slim. It kinda makes me sad. But I'm not 16 anymore.

 My hubby is back to running. He hasn't really run since shortly after Dakota was born. (ahem! almost 10 years ago) I am amazed at his determination and commitment. He's motivating! I love that about him. We are getting healthy and active to keep up with our kids. We want to help instill a healthy lifestyle in them as well. Making smarter eating choices and staying active.

I'm excited for 2016 and the new adventures it will hold for my husband and I...and our family.

God has given us this life to live for him. My goal is to influence and help 1 person. No, not the whole world. Just 1 person to become a better person inside and out.

Stay tuned for more fun happenings with The Smiths in 2016. ♥

 -enJoy

Happy Birthday to Lilyann!

Tomorrow is Lilyann's 8th birthday!!

It just doesn't seem possible. 

 1st Birthday

 2nd Birthday

 

 3rd Birthday

 4th Birthday

 5th Birthday

 6th Birthday

 7th Birthday

8th Birthday

Lilyann is growing into a beautiful, kind hearted young lady.

To think back to a time when we were unsure if she would even make it to her first birthday....God has been good. 

Lilyann is our Heart Warrior. She was born with a congenital heart defect. We found out about it when we took her to the doctor because she wouldn't eat, just cry. Lilyann was 7 weeks old at the time. Our lives all changed that day. You read about the stories of similar happening to other people, but you never think it can happen to your child. Lilyann was then diagnosed with a medium to large Ventricular Septal Defect. This is a common CHD and usually can correct itself. But Lilyann's body didn't have time to heal itself. She wasn't gaining weight. She could barely stay awake during a feeding. When my husband and I decided to "just fix her heart", it was a bit of relief but also brought on a new case of nerves and anxiety. We had just given the doctors the okay to perform open heart surgery on our tiny little girl. Hard to take it...but the best decision we could have made.

At 4 1/2 months, Lilyann had open heart surgery to fix her VSD. The surgery worked!!!

We owe it all to God, the doctors, and our family n friends praying.

Lilyann is currently heart healthy ♥

God has something special in store for Miss Lilyann. I don't know what it is. But I know that He has a plan. I pray that Lilyann will continue to share His light through her kindness toward others.

-enJoy

 

Happy Birthday to my precious Lilyann! I love you dearly. You are such a beautiful young lady.

My blurb about MY Crazy Healthy Life

I originally started this blog for the sole reason to document life as a mom with 2 kids 2 and under. Then a few weeks after that, we received our daughter's heart diagnosis and I used the blog to update family and friends on her progress/surgery/recovery. 

That was almost 8 years ago.

I still post randomly on the blog to update those who still follow our life...and to share about heart checkups, etc. 

 Our Christmas pic 2012

Our Christmas pic 2014

Today, I'm posting about me. Is that allowed? I'm not a fan of putting the attention on myself...I always feel like it sets me up for a fall. But here goes.....

It's been 19 months (a little over a year and a half) since I started the journey to get healthy. I seriously can't believe I've stuck with it this long. Usually I can jump on the bandwagon for 3 months and I'm hanging on for dear life at 2 months. But this time, something clicked. I saw progress. It became a "healthy" addiction. Am I overly confident to say that "I am proud of myself"?! I love the progress that I am seeing. I feel better...I look better. I can keep up with the kiddos (on most days) and my husband jumped on board with me as well. Having a STRONG support team has made the difference in this journey. 

And yes, it's been 19 months of going to the gym at least 4 days a week. I love to take classes but I really love to just push myself and better my walking time/pace. I love to add just 5 more lbs to the strength machine and finish strong. It's crazy how your mindset changes when the progress is positive.

I love my gym. I go at the same times each day, so I tend to see the same people, same smiling faces. It's encouraging. Why? because they're there, too. They are on the same "get healthy" journey as I am. We come in all shapes and sizes. There are some wiser (meaning older) gentlemen that can walk/run faster than I can. That's motivating to me!! And the wiser ladies keeping a fast walking pace or pedaling the recumbent bike. Yes, motivating. We are all doing this ....together. Though we don't even know each other except for the occasional nod or smile. 

And my Zumba friends!!! they are THE BEST!!! I love dancing with them. I'm part of the awesome back row crew...knee brace and all. I love seeing their smiling faces. 

It helps me to keep the consistency of working out to know that I have friends there working right along with me. 

And not to forget the fabulous instructors who push you to be a better YOU. Yes! I love it!! 

My husband and I recently started the 21 day Fix by Beachbody. It's actually pretty easy to pick up on. I was so overwhelmed by reading up on it. I was thinking of all the things that I couldn't eat/drink while I was on it. But the exciting part is ALL the things you get to eat/drink. We are day 4 and I feel great! The scale is staying on the lower numbers that I LOVE to see. But it's not just about the scale...it's about learning portion control and proper food choices. My clothes are fitting not so snug.  

Now...if I could just figure out the key to getting a jump on seasonal allergies...ALL would be GREAT!! 

So...that's my "all about ME" post. If you're ever thinking about going to the gym or joining, or even just taking the step to just be healthy, I challenge YOU to DO IT!! You won't be sorry. 

Until the next posting.....do something OUT of your Comfort Zone...and as always...

-enJoy