Justin is disappointed because after all the hiking and walking and swimming he did last week, he didn't lose any weight.

 

The girls and I are very glad to have Justin and our son back from camp, though.

 

I have been checking my weight through the week and it had been up by nearly three pounds, but my body fat percentage was down significantly.  I weigh 1.2 pounds more than last week, but my body fat weight is down 1 pound and my lean mass (muscle) is up 2.2 pounds.  My muscles are sore, also.

 

I took the girls to see their grandparents on Monday and Friday.  On Tuesday, we went to the Creation Science Museum in Glen Rose, then went to Dinosaur Valley State Park.  We looked at he dinosaur replicas, the dinosaur tracks in the river, and swam and played in the river.  On Wednesday, we went to a small local zoo.  Both girls LOVED it, although we didn't see any monkeys.  We also went to the Dr. Pepper Museum.  That was fun, also, except that the fountain Dr.Pepper tasted like Waco water because they don't filter the water there.  Yuck!  They used to use Artesian wells, but the city of Waco had those all closed up years ago.  Now they use lake water that simply tastes awful.  It was still fun.

 

Justin was so proud of our son swimming the mile swim for a special patch - and getting up each morning before 6:00 am to go swim before his other classes.  That our son sucked it up and hiked 11 miles the day after doing the mile swim, even though he was sore.  That was all he needed to do to complete his camping merit badge that he needs.  He was also proud of him for coming in second in the archery tournament, even though he had an arrow go "wonky" on him.  Justin said that he really showed good leadership skills while he was there.  We are very proud of him.  He turns 17 on Wednesday.

 

The girls are up and I have a lot to do today.  Best of luck to everyone on you weigh-ins.

 

btw...  There is something really stressful going on right now.  I'm uncertain about this issue and I don't really know what to do.  If you read this and don't mind saying some prayers for us that things get sraightened out soon, I would really appreciate it.

 

Have a safe and happy Independence Day.  Remember those who are fighting for us around the world.  I am so thankful for all the freedoms we have in the United States.

 

Have a blessed week!

 

Tammy

 

 

I weighed in this morning - I thought at first I had it (the scale started at 199.6), but I'm still close anyway - 200.6 lbs.  Better than last week - and better than my last public weigh-in.  I'm okay with that.

 

Reset my goals.  I'm okay with that also.

 

Justin is at camp - having to hike to breakfast this morning he said.  Sounds like a nice way to start the day. 

 

My girls are up and ready for Mommy's attention.

 

I wish you all the best on your weigh-ins and on life this week.  May God bless each of you.

 

Tammy

For anyone who may be interested, here is a brief summary of the past couple of months:

 

Justin's left arm (he's left-handed) started acting funny.  He couldn't straighten it out.  Still can't.  He's been to a few PT sessions, but it has only made a small difference.  He has no idea what happened.

 

Been homeschooling and doing activities with the children.  Camping, rodeo (girls won 2nd and 3rd in their age group in clowning, son got his calf in the calf scramble to get a sponsored animal for the county fair next year - and got to show off what a good sport he is, too.)

 

Son has girlfriend (the one who asked him to prom.)  Had been having issues with being home on time and attitude.  Not keen on this.  Getting better sometimes, but sometimes not so much.  Some of it is just being a teenager, but some of it is more than that.

 

Took son and family camping for the weekend a few weeks ago so he could complete his cooking merit bade for Boy Scouts.  Had a really nice family weekend.  Our four-year-old daughter outfished Justin and our son - D-5, J-0, S-0.  :-)

 

Our crazy schedule has wreaked havoc on the baby's schedule, also, poor thing.  She's learning lots of new things and experimenting.

 

Our older daughter has just been super helpful and a real sweetheart.  She's already asleep. She's getting to keep Daddy's side of the bed warm while he and Matt are at Scout camp.  She is so looking forward to when she and I will be doing Daisy scouts next year.

 

As for the diet, well, I did get below 200 lbs one week, but it's been up a little since then.  I hope I'm down tomorrow.

 

Justin's weight is about the same as mine.  He's dropped below 200 lbs and has fluxuated there the past few weeks.  I bought him some new pants and shorts because his were all falling off of him - all 36" waists.  His blood pressure has been better - he's on a new medicine.  We're hoping that when he loses the weight he should, that it will be much better.  His snoring is GREATLY reduced. With just 25 lbs off, it's amazing the difference.  With a teenage son getting home late (after curfew - or sometimes with permission for special events), he still doesn't get as much sleep as he should, but he's not quite as tired as he had been.

 

I restarted the Weigh-Down program - this time watching the videos.  We didn't have a working VHS player until a couple of weeks ago.  I've also been trying to do better about other parts of my life family and spiritual.  The issues haven't been with the program, just with my not doing what I should and especially with being so concerned about the numerous things going on and to do, that I would focus on those while eating and not the pleasure of what God provided and not necessarily stopping when I should.  With God's help, I am trying to be mindful of His blessings and not be ovecome.  There is a balance in there and with God's help, I hope to find it.

 

I tried to do a new job.  That will simply not work out.  Too much going on to be able to do a quality job for them and meet the needs of my family.

 

My uncle who lives in Viigina payed a surprise visit.  He had never met Justin, much less the children.  I hope we get to go visit them soon.

 

If possible, the plan for this week is to visit Dinosaur Valley State Park.  It's a short drive and the girls have never been.  They will love seeing the life-sized replicas of the dinosaurs, swimming in the river, and seeing the dinosaur tracks.  I know I did when I was little.  We also hope to go to a local zoo.  I've heard it is nice, but it is not too large, so it should be about the right size for the girls and me, especially as it gets hot.

 

Our garden has done okay. We had squash - for a short time, but it died.  The cucumbers were originally killed by a late frost, replanted.  The plants are doing well, but we don't have any yet.  The carrots didn't make and the strawberries aren't doing great.  The tomato plants are loaded with green (and some ripening) tomatoes.  The radishes did well.  The zucchini had been doing great, but I think the squash bugs are getting to them.  I keep trying to keep them, their eggs, and young off, but I'm not sure how well I'm doing.  God provided a wonderful rain last week.  I am so grateful for that.  Our bell pepper plants are loaded and we've harvested a couple of hot peppers also.  This is only our second year, but we are learning.  I have a lot of weeding to do and transplanting of some flowers in the flowerbed.

 

I have a number of other projects I need to complete and chores to do.  If I can get things levelled off this week, I hope to be able to come back to do at least weekly updates and check-ins, but until I complete these items - and spend some quality time with my girls, I am reluctant to say that for certain.  Please continue to bear with us and know that we really do love you, but our family must take precedence over computer time.

 

Thanks to all of you who are still cheering us on.  Even though we haven't told you nearly enough, we are still cheering for you, too.

 

Tammy