Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Making it Count
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Inspired by my Running Friend
Well, though I can't run...I can bike. And I LOVE to bike. I decided this year to do some bike racing. It doesn't hurt my feet (too badly), I can continue my strength training, and I love being on my bike. My hubby agreed to train with me when he could. I plan to do a couple Duathlons as relays, and am working up the nerve to to sign up for a 31 mile race in a couple of weeks! If that goes well, I will work towards a 50 mile, and maybe even more. I am in awe of what God has done in my life through hard work and discipline. Three years ago, I could barely do a recumbent bike for 20 minutes. Now, I am biking 15 to 20 miles several times a week. I am so thankful that God continues to strengthen me daily to do the work he has called me to do in my own body, my own family, and among my friends. I look at my runner friend, and am so thankful that her encouragement has inspired me. I hope that I can inspire others the same way. Great Job, My Friend....what's next??? :)
Thursday, April 16, 2009
I did it!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
No temptation
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Encouraging through the pain
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Another small milestone
Friday, March 13, 2009
How sweet to hold....a newborn baby!

per⋅sist: to continue steadfastly or firmly in some state, purpose, course of action, or the like, esp in spite of opposition; to last or endure
The word PERSIST has been in the forefront of my mind for the past several weeks. There are so many things I want to PERSIST in. I wish I could PERSIST in becoming a better blogger. I wish I could PERSIST in keeping up with my housework, my couponing, my schoolwork, my personal spiritual growth, ministry. There are so many things that I am called to PERSIST in. Recently, God has called me to a group of women who have adopted the word PERSIST as our group name. It stands for Pursuing Excellence Regardless, Standing Immovable, Striving Together. This group is a group of women striving to improve their health and wellness. Our goals include losing body fat, gaining muscle, and improving our overall wellness. The words we chose to represent us speak volumes. Pursuing Excellence Regardless: for me, this means in everything I do, eat, and drink...do it all for the glory of God. In this aspect of my life, my body, it involves so many choices made every hour of every day. Am I pursuing excellence in every food choice I make? Am I pursuing excellence in every minute I spend sweating and working out? Am I pursuing excellence REGARDLESS of my feelings, my emotions, my mood for the day? Am I giving God my best...REGARDLESS? Standing Immovable: Oh, how I fail at this daily. When I hear the word IMMOVABLE, I picture a big stone structure that cannot be moved. NOTHING would shake that structure. I am so easily shaken, so easily tempted back towards my old ways. Striving Together: Wow. This one is harder than I expected. As human beings, we just naturally let each other down. My schedule doesn't meet up with my partners. Someones kid gets sick, or someone just doesn't feel like meeting together. Ultimately, we are called to be accountable. Hebrews speaks specifically of "meeting together". As fellow believers, we must encourage each other on towards good deeds. In addition, we are commanded to NOT be a stumbling block to each other. In our group, PERSIST, it is critical that we are following these Biblical Principals of accountability and encouragement. When one of us hurts, we should all hurt; when one of us rejoices, we should all rejoice. Why is this so hard? When we make decisions to waiver, to be "movable", we are letting each other down, we are adding to the weakness, instead of being an immovable structure. As I learn to PERSIST in every aspect of my life, I pray that I am able to PURSUE EXCELLENCE REGARDLESS. I pray that I STAND IMMOVABLE. And I pray that God helps me to STRIVE TOGETHER with my fellow sisters who struggle with the same issues as I do. My journey continues to evolve, I continue to learn new things about myself and others. Some exciting, some not so exciting. But in all of it, I pray that I PERSIST.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
New Year...New Resolutions...
Sunday, December 28, 2008
10 years already, yet it seems a lifetime

Ten years ago today, my Grandmother died. Seems like a pretty benign statement. Grandmothers are supposed to die. They are old, mine was sick for 13 years with heart disease. Shouldn't cause to much of a blip in our lives when a Grandmother dies. Not this Grandmother. This woman was truly the most amazing woman you would ever want to meet. I was the oldest granddaughter out of...well, I've lost count...like 40 something. And I thought my relationship with her was the most special. Come to find out...all 40something grandchildren felt the same way. We all thought we were the favorite! There are so many special things I remember about Grandmother. I remember being a child and staying at her scary house (and hating it), I remember going to the beach and having her help me body surf in the waves. I remember her taking us to ride Popsicle and Pumpkin (they were horses) when the Ohio Watts cousins came. I still laugh when I think of the many, many times I would startle her accidentally when she walked in a room. She would scream, then I would scream....then we couldn't stop laughing. She was a huge fan of me in my weight loss struggles. Anything she could do or buy me to help me with the process, she would do. She would cry with me when I didn't lose weight regardless of the work, and rejoice greatly when I did. I have moments in my memory that are etched there forever. When Greg and I went to tell her that we were engaged, when I got married and she was there. (We had been told she wouldn't live long enough to see us married). When I lived with her during the summer of my 16th birthday to take drivers ed. She got me hooked on soap operas!! Our long talks deep into the day when I was supposed to be working in the office. The trips to the store to buy her bridge mix and hard cookies that we would hide for her to snack on. The advice she would give me about my new friends, and the warnings about boys. She was one of the few people that could call me by my full name and I wouldn't feel at all threatened or in trouble. Grandmother shared some of her struggles with me, and I found out later how incredibly blessed I was to be given that honor. I will treasure her life lessons and struggles forever. What an incredible legacy she has left us. All of the children serving in ministry in some capacity. All the grandchildren given a solid Christian foundation. At my deepest moments of grief I have ached for her. Each baby that never went to full pregnancy, each anniversary of Mark's death, each birthday of my children, and now...as Danielle enters the age that I was closest to my Grandmother, I am so blessed to see my Mom carrying on the tradition. For truly, my Grandmother was my dearest and best friend, next to my Mother. I have a huge whole that aches for her. No, not like any other Grandmother...not even close. I miss you, Grandmother. I ache to tell you the things in my world. I ache to sit next to you and talk for hours. I ache for your comfort, your advice, your laughter. I love you....I can't wait to see you again.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Facing the holidays as a step-mom
My experience as a step-mom has been an amazing roller coaster ride. There was so much I did wrong and so much I would change. Somehow, God's grace has covered a multitude of my mistakes. Cori was 18 months when I met my husband, Greg; so I have always been in Cori's life. Every Christmas and every other summer he would come to Delaware from the time he was three years old. "Dad" and "Heidi" went together. We hardly ever used the word "step". We were an instant family. We did the typical “shared custody” for several years. At the age of 11, he stopped visiting his mother altogether. That was when it got VERY interesting. I was no longer a "part time" Mom to Cori. I was IT. Cori even started to call me “Mom”. I was battling a force much stronger than any I had ever experienced; the force of another mom, Cori's mom, in my home. The hardest times in Cori's life were the holidays. From about Halloween through Valentine's Day, Cori suffered in silence. It took us several years of changed behavior for us to figure out what the issue was. Cori missed his mom, and as hard as I tried, I didn't cut it. The tie from a child to his mother is like no other. The typical blended family rules didn't apply to us in that I wasn't "sharing" custody. But, I was definitely sharing. There were things I could have done to help Cori, and the rest of our family, through the holiday season. The sullen looks from Cori and the irritation I felt from his behavior could have been improved. People always say that Christmas is a time for children, but for a “step-child”, these magical days are sometimes painful. Here are some things about Christmas with a “step-child” I wish I had learned early on.
1. Be the grown up, and understand that holidays can be very painful for step-children. Whether through divorce or death, they do not have their two parents together. Because they may not yet understand that hollow feeling, they may lash out. Remember that while if feels personal against you, it isn’t.
2. Talk to the child about the other parent in a positive, uplifting way. Ask them if they are missing their Mom. Listen to them with an open heart. Open the lines of communication and step into their pain, even if they think you caused it.
3. Encourage your family to accept your step-child and do everything they can to make Christmas special for them. Often, a step-child has to split their time between parents. Schedule family functions so that they can attend if possible.
4. Touch and hug your step-child as much as you can. This was something I struggled with so much, and I regret it deeply. Physical touch is so important to children of all ages.
5. Enjoy every minute you have with them. Remember that the ideal family mold was broken for them. You can make it less painful by showing them you enjoy them, even if they make it hard.
6. Encourage the child to enjoy their time away from you without guilt. Tell them how much you want them to enjoy it, and be sure to be excited when they tell you about it. Don't ever give the child reason to believe you dislike the "other family".
This Christmas season, remove the word “step” from your vocabulary, hug your CHILD, and pray that the child in your blended family will see the beautiful reflection of Jesus every time he looks at you.
Friday, December 5, 2008
FACEBOOK is good, but FACE to FACE really is better!
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Stay off my feet? Are you crazy?
BUT, who is being Mommy???? Mommy is stuck in her room. Well, I'm still here, but am I really HERE? About a week into it, a week of me NOT leaving my room, I started hearing fighting and bickering. Less smiles on the kids faces, less smile on Hubby's face....less willingness to take care of Mommy. Hmmmm...........I needed to go downstairs. So, I did. I went to the couch, set up camp, and everything settled down. The kids stopped fighting, no more bickering. Hubby seemed slightly less tense, the kids were so much happier. Everyone wanted to serve me and help out. Why? What changed? MOMMY became the focal point of the home again. All was right in the home again. I may not have been fixing dinner in the kitchen, or washing clothes in the laundry room, or running to the grocery store, or fixing lunches, or even sitting WITH my children on the couch; but I was back to the center of the home, and that was where I belonged.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
A cry for help from an young friend and 7 rules of dieting


As these pictures show, in the past 3 years I have lost close to 100 pounds. I still have weight to lose, and for me it is a slow painful process. Today I received a heart breaking email from a young (21 year old) woman that touched me deeply. She and I go way back, and I recently saw her at a wedding. It was the first time she had seen my weight loss and it really stuck with her. Her email was titled "HELP", and she said that she couldn't stop thinking about my weight loss and she wanted me to help her. She said that she is tired of putting a towel on the mirror when she gets in the shower every day so that she can't see herself when she gets out. THIS just broke my heart. I remember so well being overwhelmed with the amount of weight I had to lose, and feeling hopeless to do it. Due to distance, I cannot help her with hands on training. But, I passed on my 7 rules of weight loss to her, in the hopes that it would give her a jumpstart. It seemed like a great opportunity to capture them here in my blog.
