A Little Intro!

Hi Everyone!

I think I may have a few more followers than I did a week ago and so I would love to take just a minute to share a little more with you of who I am before we kick off the Body and Soul Bootcamp (read below for details)!  I am SO excited about the bootcamp...but MORE on that Monday, August 27th...so come back ya'll!

The Quick Stats:
Born in the Mid-West
Half of my childhood spent in the Pacific Northwest
After college moved back to the Mid-West and been here ever since. :)

Married for 5 years to my wonderful God-loving, funny, awesome hubby!

We have been blessed with 1 daughter, Faith who is 2!

Kindergarten teacher turned SAHM and loving it!

A Little Deeper Details:
Back in 2007, shortly after we got married, I started blogging as just a hobby.  It was great, but I had little time to keep up with it because I was in my first year of teaching Kindergarten.  To say I was exhausted is an understatement!  I loved my job and school, but man it was tough tough work.  Then in 2008, Wade and I decided that it was time to start a family or at least we thought we were ready to start a family, but God had other plans that year.  We spent that year in "unexplained" infertility.  A.K.A "just not God's timing."  It was SO SO hard to be patient and wait when you long and ache for a child to hold in your arms and to raise.  You can read about our journey in the link on the top right of this blog.  In October of 2009, we learned we were expecting!  Our sweet baby Faith was born at 30 weeks and spent 8 weeks in the NICU.  It was a journey that has changed my life!  We are SO blessed with our daughter.  We thank Jesus for the wait because we got such a special gift from it...our daughter!

In the Spring of 2008, my mom was diagnosed with stage 3 kidney cancer.  She passed away in October of 2010.  My mom fought the good fight, but in the end Jesus was calling her home and she is now dancing the streets of gold in Heaven.  To say, "I miss her"...just isn't strong enough words to describe it.  There is much to say on all of this and someday I will blog more...

After my daughter's birth and then five months later with my mom's death, I just kind of shut down.  I began not really caring what I ate or how I looked.  Well, I take that back...I did care how I looked, but my emotions were so high, so deep, so sorrowful, that I just gave into emotional eating.  I found myself snacking whenever on whatever...it was comfort to me really.  And, working out became zero to none. Then add all the stress and my body just started getting all out of whack!  For the last year and really for the last 6 months, I have changed how I eat.  I don't constantly snack or choose comfort foods.  I found Katie's site at Dashing Dish right when I was at my lowest.  To this day, I cannot even remember how I found Dashing Dish, but God knew I NEEDED to hear her words that God was leading her to share.  God used her words, recipes, and scripture to start peeling back the layers of my sorrow and begin to break bad habits.  I started to have the desire to do it....to believe that God has always wanted the best for me.  It was just me needing to believe...to believe that I am "worth it" to be healthier!  It has taken a long time to get here.  It has been a process for sure and I am still in the making!

I was in college when I first asked Christ in my heart!  It was at a time where I was going through another really hard thing that maybe I can share another time.  Through college, I grew in my faith and leaned on God in times of trouble and joy.  But, with my mom's death...I struggled with God.  I found myself being lack luster with my journaling and Bible study and before I knew it Satan got me right where he wanted me to be. Again, right during this time is when Katie's Dashing Dish spoke to me and encouraged me through her devotionals.  I finally feel like I am walking next to Jesus again daily and not lagging behind or ahead, but right in step with the ONE who LOVES me more than any other.

Please join me on this journey!  This is a journey I plan to share with you all.  So, stick around...k?!

Blessings!