Back to the 80's

Every year, Eric participates in his Junior High's Spring Musical. He plays in the orchestra and is the Assistant Orchestra Leader. This year, the musical was "Back to the 80's", which I found very amusing and so did Braden and Emma. (Even though they had no idea why the adults were laughing so much) Here is evidence of Eric playing in the orchestra.. yeah the football jerseys are... amazing.

Wednesday update

Good news for us. Eric and I both lost another pound last week. The good news is about Eric's cholesterol. Two years ago, his level was at 228. Pretty scary. So, under our doctor's advice, he started taking a niacin supplement. This plus the weight loss equals a level of 177. He lost 10 pounds last year and 15 since January. Good for him!

I haven't had my cholesterol taken, but I should. I have lost 19 pounds since the beginning of January.

Yes, even more snow

The rain I had hoped for descended upon us in the form of 6 more inches of snow. *sigh* Several schools north of us couldn't even get their students home yesterday afternoon and evening, so the teachers and children had a sleep over at the schools. I have to think that I wouldn't allow my children to do that. If I couldn't drive there, I would brace myself up and walk. I think that the children would handle a long snowy walk better than being abandoned over night at the school. Of course, it helps that our school is only 1/2 a mile away. Our school district has never had a snow day during the 12 years Eric has taught. They closed the school to students once when the water main at his school broke, but teachers were required to come in for a half day. They were told to "hold it" since all of the water was turned off. *sigh*

Have a great Valentine's Day!

The Sun is Shining!

After a very long winter, the sun is shining today. The snow is melting. My tulips and daffodils are starting to push up from the ground. Unfortunately, there is supposed to be another storm this afternoon. I'm hoping for rain, but I think we will be getting more snow.

Eric is getting over a cold, but I think I'm picking it up. I feel really tired and sluggish today. I'm trying to be enthusiastic, but it's a struggle. Eric and I weighed in this morning. We both lost 3 pounds last week. I'm at a loss of twelve pounds and Eric is 10 pounds down. The most exciting news is that I am wearing a pair of pants that I couldn't even get buttoned a month ago. Yes, the button wouldn't even come near the buttonhole. I was on cloud 9 this morning. These pants are 4 sizes smaller than the others. Hurray! The only problem now is that I won't have any clothes that fit, but I don't want to buy any more because I fully intend to lose more weight. ;)

Adam wants me to let him type his name.. So here we go:

aaaaaaadaam

Just a Wednesday.

Just wanted to post weight loss updates. Eric is down 2 and I have moved past a small plateau to lose another 2 pounds. So far I've lost 9 and Eric's lost 7. Woo-Hoo! My own personal goal is to lose one pound a week for a year. It's been 5 weeks so far. I've discovered that the cravings for sweets are so much more controllable now. Now I'm working on the snacking cravings. In the past, when I would read, I would look up and have a big snack. *sigh* I wouldn't even remember getting it. Yes, I know ... not a good thing. So sometimes, that urge to snack just hits me and I work on fighting it off. Another thing that has helped me was reading the Church's guide to addictive behaviors. They created a 12 step program for addictions. It was really interesting to read it and apply parts of it in my own life.

I think, in spite of the above, that the hardest part is the discouragement. Sometimes I look at myself in the mirror and the adversary whispers in my ear that my goal is impossible, that I will never be able to lose all of this extra weight. I am so thankful for the love and support of my friends and family, especially Eric who is taking this journey with me. I'm so grateful for a Savior who understands.

When I emailed Eric earlier, I mentioned that I was really needing a grown-up person to talk to today, so anyone who reads this post gets to hear all of my thoughts and feelings. Thanks :)

More snow and other items of business

We have MORE snow, only about 3 inches, but my yard was just beginning to show signs of grass around the edges. Oh well, we will appreciate the water in the summer.

Emma's 2nd grade program was last night. She was one of about 20 children who had a spoken part. She did a great job, her voice was lovely. The program focused on Martin Luther King Jr and they sang several musical numbers. Here's a picture I took right before the program started.




I didn't realize until I had taken the picture that Emma is considerably shorter than her friends. (yes, she's the one in the middle.) She looked very cute. Her teacher, Mrs. Roylance, is in the back. Emma LOVES her teacher. (Drama is at new heights recently. Last week, Eric diagnosed her with a case of dramafeminitis.)

Speaking of cute. We have two more children who love the camera. Eric's parents swear that this is a trait they inherited from him. I guess he used to jump out into any picture he could. We were used to Braden doing that, but now Adam and Jon both want their turns..

They start posing whenever I get my cell phone out. It was even more fun taking video of them..

Braden had pack meeting last night as well. He earned the maps and compass belt loop, the swimming belt loop, a bead toward his Bear badge, and the Religion Knot patch. Next month, he will have earned his Bear and several arrowpoints. I'll have to get a good picture of him in his uniform so that he doesn't feel left out.

Needless to say, even by our busy standards, yesterday was a doosy. Both Pack Meeting and the 2nd grade program were at 7, and Emma had gymnastics from 4:30 to 6.

Oh, and finally to end with, Eric and I weighed in this morning. I lost 7 pounds in the month of January and he lost 5! CONGRATS to us!

Forgotten Information

Eric was the winner this week. He dropped another pound. I stayed steady, but the pants are getting quite loose.

Triumph

After much labor and brain racking, we have finally figured out how to attach my cell phone to the computer. The new phone came with a USB cable, but no software. *sigh* It took Eric and his brother, Neil, 2 hours to figure out where the software was. Today I got it installed correctly, mostly by accident. Now I can download a years' worth of pictures and I can upload music. My favorite is that I uploaded the Primary song, "Quickly I'll Obey," and set it to be the ring tone for my parents and Eric's. Now whenever they call, my phone sings out "When my mother calls me..." :) Yes, I do find myself amusingly clever sometimes.

Now off to Dance Dance Revolution with Eric. The picture at the right shows how much snow we have piled up in the front yard. (before yesterday's six additional inches.) We have been walking in the evenings, but now we are confined to home. Eric is much more precise rhythm-wise, but I miss fewer arrows.

Tomorrow is weigh-in. Wish us luck.

The numbers are in

The numbers are in... Eric and I both lost 2 pounds last week... So I'm down 6 and he's down 4.

This morning I will be going to the school to watch Braden help with a flag ceremony for the Utah County PTA Council meeting. He looks so cute in his uniform. I'll try to get a picture.

I got a picture, but you can't see much since it was taken with my camera phone and Adam was sitting on my lap squirming. Braden is the one on the right.

New Years Resolution

Eric and I created a New Years' Resolution and part of the goal is to spread the word so that we are more likely to be successful. We have decided to lose weight. We have made some lifestyle changes that are helping us reach our goals. The changes include drinking more water, exercising, and avoiding sweets. We allow ourselves three desserts a week, but no other treats. But I've notice now that we are past the extreme cravings that plagued us the first week, we are less likely to even want the desserts we allowed ourselves. The goal is to loss one pound a week until July. The reward is a trip to Anniversary Inn if we both lose a combined 50 pounds. (25 each) We weigh in once a week. Tomorrow morning is the next weigh in, but so far I've lost 4 pounds and Eric's lost 2. A preliminary weigh in shows Eric dropping 4 more pounds and me losing 2, but we will report after tomorrow's trip to the scales. Wish us good luck!

Christmas Holiday Update

It seems like I haven't posted for weeks. We've had a delightful holiday. The Sunday before Christmas we spent at Grandma and Grandpa Ferrin's house for a sleepover. It was nice for the kids to get their grandparents to themselves. We had Sunday dinner and then opened our Christmas gifts to each other. We put the kids to bed, and then Mom Ferrin and I created "sculpy" angels for my 8 young women (Beehives) at church, and Dad Ferrin and Eric did a puzzle. On Christmas Eve, we went home and prepared for the night's activities. We drove back to the Ferrin household, to be joined by Karla, Don and their family, Neil and LeAnn, Stefanie, Josh and their family, Rachel, Brandon and their daughter, and Tim and Carly. Peter, Kristina and their daughter were sorely missed. We had a traditional Portuguese Christmas dinner consisting of boiled vegetables and fish, and then we had a family musical program with different members of the family performing. After all of that excitment, we packed up the kids and drove back home. Most of the other siblings stayed at Grandma's house.

Christmas morning was delightful. The kids woke up about 6 and went downstairs to discover their gifts from Santa. Then we opened gifts. We spent a quiet morning playing and watching "Elmo's World" DVDs. Jon-Jon LOVES anything Elmo. So when he discovered that DVD, he insisted on watching it at least 5 times. At about 9 o'clock, we started the pie making. The only trauma was when both containers of shortening were rancid. Eric drove all over Springville looking for any place that had shortening. Nobody did, but we were able to borrow some from a neighbor. We made pumpkin, dark chocolate cream, sugar-free cherry, banana cream, and apple pies. They were delicious. We had a traditional American Christmas dinner with turkey and all the trimmings.

The day after Christmas, the Hunstman cousins came from Salt Lake City to go to Jumpin Jacks with the kids. They had a blast. I only wish I had pictures. We then topped off the evening with a visit to the Golden Arches. How could a day get better?

We were going to head to Idaho for the blessing of my sisters' new baby, but didn't make it after the hospitalization of the husband of my best friend, Liz. He's still in Intensive Care, with the doctors and nurses confused about whether or not he had a heart attack. A nasty infection has made him a very sick man, and we stayed at home to help Liz with her children. Please direct any thoughts and prayers to their family.

Tonight we had another turkey dinner (turkeys were cheap 50 cents a pound). Rachel, Brandon and Abi came over and also our neighbor, Karen (who the children adore -- especially Jon-Jon.)

So, now that you have been updated, except our love for the beautiful Holiday Season and Wonderful New Year.

Family Night Activity

Last night, we took the kids to a new business in the community called "Jumpin Jacks." It is housed in a large warehouse and the whole room is filled with large inflatables. Eric and I even played for a little while, a very short while for Mom. I was more content to help Jon play. I was reminded of the old TV show "American Gladiators," and I realized why I would never be a contestant. It was much harder to do than it looked. The kids had a great time and they want to take all of their cousins and friends.