Let's Catch Up!

It's been a while since we've caught up! Tons of things have happened since the last time I posted. It's been about 5 months! I'm so terrible at this, but what can I say...it's just  who I am. :)
For starters, I have a new job. I am keeping 2 boys before and after school. They are 11 and 13. They are pretty good for the most part and I usually don't have to do much except for fix them dinner. I only work 4 days a week giving me Fridays off which I love. I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to work a normal job again after being so spoiled by staying home and then working this current job!
We went home for Christmas for about 2 weeks. My favorite part of the whole trip was getting to hold my incredibly handsome new baby nephew Hollis. My sister Megan and her husband Jerad had him on November 28th so he was only a few weeks old when we got there. I miss him so much and can't hardly stand the thought that when we see him again he will be about 6 months old!! That is way too long to wait! That is probably the biggest complaint I have about living so far away from our families...we just miss so much!
As of the middle of January we set out to get healthier and loose some weight. I started doing the Body By Vi shakes but so far I haven't stuck with them very well. Instead I just began counting calories which seems to work better for me. I will still have the shakes from time to time as a meal replacement but I'm just not doing them twice a day like I had planned. I have however lost a total of  14 lbs and Justin has lost around 7. We have been trying to go the gym or work out at home everyday. Getting healthier makes you feel so good! We have found a few times, now that we are eating healthier, our belly's can't  take it when we eat something bad. For my birthday we went to this all you can eat seafood place called Captain George's. It was delicious, but I paid for it later. My belly was very, very mad at me! But it made me realize how much better I feel eating healthier, less processed foods! I also known that loosing weight is essential to me getting pregnant. I know that if I loose weight then it will even become possible for me to get pregnant on my own! When praying about getting pregnant I've often asked the Lord "Is there something I need to be doing". More than once I've felt like he's said to loose weight. Not because he can't heal me if I'm fat but I believe more out of obedience. The Lord wants us to be healthy and treat our bodies with respect. The scripture in the Bible that talks about our bodies being temples doesn't just refer to sexual immorality (this is a phrase you hear a lot as a teen when hearing about premarital sex) but also to the foods you put into your body and the condition you let it get into.
So since were on the subject of trying to get pregnant......We did our last fertility treatment this past month. My doctor said that we could do another 3 months but we are just so worn out with it all. We needed this break very badly! When you are constantly month after month doing fertility and worrying about doing everything at the right time it gets a little robotic. It takes the romance and the joy out of what you are doing. I think we began this second process around June so it's been about 7 or 8 months since we began this time. So while we take this much needed break we will also be planning for me to have a laproscopic  surgery on April 6th. They are going to go in to check if I have any endometriosis because that could be the reason I haven't been getting pregnant even though I've been ovulating just fine. Also they are going to do ovarian drilling. It sounds really scary, but from what I've heard it's not so bad. They pretty much go in and scale away at the calloused parts of my ovaries. It's an older technique but one that has proved to work. Something like 80% of women respond positively and are able to get pregnant afterwards! I also have a large cyst that has been there for a while that they are going to remove while they are in there. I'm a little nervous just because I hate surgery and being put under. I've only been put under one other time when I had my wisdom teeth cut out and I woke up crying and blubbering. I kind of hope that doesn't happen this time.  But, it's a pretty simple surgery and it's outpatient so it really shouldn't be too bad. Just an excuse to get pampered for a few days! ;)
The last thing I want to share is the WONDERFUL recipe that is definitely NOT on my diet plan!! ha ha My good friend Rachel Rowe shared this on facebook and they looked delicious! We had a get together last night at my friend Heather's so I thought I would make them for that. They were a little bit incredible! They are from the Pioneer Woman, whom I LOVE! They are called "knock-you-naked brownies" Here is the recipe.....
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/05/knock-you-naked-brownies/

I Am What God Says I Am

I am a joint-heir with Christ Romans 8: 17
I am the righteousness of God in Christ. 2 Cor.5: 21
I am the temple of the Holy Spirit. 1 Cor. 6: 19
I am the apple of His eye. Zec.2: 8
I am an ambassador for Christ. 2 Cor.5: 20
I am free from condemnation Romans 8: 1
I am more than a conqueror Romans 8: 17
I am the salt of the earth. Mathew 5: 13
I am the light of the world Mathew 5: 14 & Eph. 5: 8
I am a member of the household of faith Gal.6 :10
I am a branch of the True Vine John 15: 5
I am the will of God James 1: 8
I am in the palm of the Lord’s Hand Isa. 49: 16
I am covered by the shadow of His Hand Isa. 51: 6
I am loved by God as much as He loves Jesus John 17:23
I am in God’s Hand and none can pluck me out John10:28
I am delivered from sin Romans 6: 7
I am free from weaknesses and diseases. Matt.8: 17
I am complete in Him. Col.2: 10
I am translated into the kingdom of God’s Son.Col.1:13
I am delivered from the power of darkness Col. 1: 13
I am accepted in Him Eph. 1: 6
I am dead to sin and alive to God in Christ.Rom.6:11
I am seated in heavenly places in Christ. Eph. 2: 6
I am redeemed from the curse of the law. Gal. 3: 13
I am in Christ. 1 Cor. 1: 30
I am hidden with Christ in God. Col. 3: 3

Recent trip home and 17 Day Diet.

Well, we just got back from a GREAT trip at home! We were there for Justin's brother's wedding. We were there for 10 days. I do have to say though that I am very glad to be back in Virginia Beach where it is a whole lot cooler than it was in Arkansas! Here are a few pics from the wdding:

Now on to this diet mess. :)
Justin and I have started the "17 Day Diet" as of yesterday. It's a GREAT diet that not only helps you loose weight, but keep it off! So far we have done pretty well! We are not allowed to have any sugar, bread, pasta, or any other carb that is not good for you. Eventually we will be able to eat things like whole wheat bread, but for now we have to keep that stuff out of the house! The hardest part has been going to the grocery store. Things I would normally care less about just jump off the isles at me! It's absolutely crazy how my sense of smell has increased and causes me to crave things like bread and sweets. (this only happens at the store!) Tonight I was faced with a cupcake, right in my face! It was aweful! But, I resisted because loosing weight is way more important to me than a sugary high! We are doing this 1. because we both need to loose some weight, and 2. because this should help in the process of getting pregnant. I definately would benefit from a healthier weight and eating habits. I'm looking forward to seeing how much weight we have lost after the first 17 days and so on.

A breath of Fresh Air!

Well, for the last month we've been a little on edge. Justin has had some cyst type things on his arm and back since before we married 4 years ago. They were concerning to me, but him being a man didn't think they were that big of a deal, plus he hates needles and such so he dispised the thought of getting them removed. I have begged him on and off for the last 4 years and when we moved here to Virginia I knew his job would be less demanding and he would have more time to take care of them. Needless to say we made an appointment, had them removed, and then got the test results.
They called it hereditary leiomyoma and said that all 3 places were Atypical and abnormal. They said, and this is the doctor's words exactly: "It's not really cancer, but it's not really not cancer." It is a rare disease that of course as you know is hereditary and it leads to and is associated with Renal Cell Carcinoma or better known as kidney cancer.
It's difficult as a wife, and a young one at that, to hear that your husband could have kidney cancer. I was scared beyond belief! They did a CAT scan and while we waited for those results I was on pins and needles for the first few days anyway. I just began to pray and believe that everything would be normal. Oh, did I mention that his mom passed away of cancer and it began in her kidneys? When we found that information out my heart really sank! But like I said, I knew that God had a bigger, better plan for us than cancer! We both believed that God was going to take care of all this!
Today he had surgery again in the same 3 spots as before. They had to go back in and cut out more chunks to make sure they got all of the abnormal tissue, and guess what............ the CAT scan showed NORMAL kidneys!! You can't imagine my joy and relief, and mostly my thankfulness to God that he did what we knew he would do!

So now, we will wait to get the Pathology report to make sure they got it all. (Please pray that they did b/c I'm not sure Justin can endure yet ANOTHER surgery on those places! His incisions are already about 5 inches long each!) For those of you that knew about this....THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts! I would be so lost without Justin and I'm so glad to know that God still has a plan for us! :)

Just for starters!

I'm really excited about starting this blog! I've always wanted to do one, just never took the initiative to do so! I also wondered if anyone would really be interested enough in our boring little life to read it! LOL Anyways, I'm looking forward to keeping up with this and hopefully can use this is a stress reliever! (Not that being a housewife is very stressful.)
Last week Lindsey, Korey and Shandi came to visit. We had SUCH a great time! It was so nice to have a friend from back home here at my home. I love having people here and I really love having people from back home here. I often wonder when they see my home if they are shocked or if they thought it would look the way it does. And by that I mean decorative wise. Anyhow, we had such a big week. Shandi was ADORABLE as usual! She was so fun at the beach. She had never been before so it was exciting getting to experience that with her. The waves would knock her over and she would just get right back up and say "I love it!" We laughed so much at her! The things that girl says just keeps you in stitches!
My mom, grandma and aunt Hope will be here mid July and THEN, we will be heading home on the 25th of July! I can't wait to come home. We enjoy our time there so much and really love that we get to come home so much more now that Justin is at his new job. I hope we get to see all of our friends and family while we are there!

Baby news:
We are currently doing fertility treatments right now. This past month has been my 2nd month of trying this round. I LOVE my new doctor and she has stepped back and taken a much simpler approach. We have been doing Clomid which is an ovulation stimulant. I had taken shots before that were more stressful and much more abrasive to my body. I feel good about the treatment we are getting now and I really think this new doctor is wonderful!

Well, that is all the news for now! Thanks for reading! :)