Sunday in the South: The Tale of the Three Trees

I rotate teaching Sunday school with two other precious women. Today was my turn to teach a "Christmas" lesson to our Youth Girls Sunday School Class. I wanted to do something fun and different from the "normal" Christmas lesson. The Tale of the Three Trees and cookies just kept coming to mind. Cookies because well...who doesn't love a good Christmas cookie and the Three Trees story because it is one of my favorites. My mama bought if for Peyton when he was little bitty, he passed it on to Landon. It is a treasured keepsake in our home. Since the book is fictional I wanted to tie in scripture for my girls. This is what God laid on my heart for them...

The powerful message that God has a special plan for our lives permeates through the story of the three trees. The trees, much like all of us have dreams and plans for what they want in life. The trees find themselves in places that they never desired to be in during their life, but at the end "God's love changes everything."

Listen to the actual story here:

The Tale of Three Trees

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

God has a plan for each and every one of us. There may be times we lose sight of our dreams, and we may not understand the things that take place in our lives. We must remember through that God loves us, has a plan for us, and is in complete control. We can trust him.

I asked the girls if the trees dreams came true. There answer, "Yes, just in a different way than they wanted.

Isaiah 55:8
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," declares the Lord."

We talked about Mary and Joseph. Two people that couldn't be more like the trees. Neither of them were able to live out their original plans for lives. Mary certainly wasn't expecting to have a baby much less deliver the King of the universe. They did however end up with each other, and more than they could have ever hoped or dreamed of. I talked to the girls about how cool it is that the people of the Bible, even though it was 100's of 1000's of years ago, had struggles just like us. Had hopes, and dreams, and plans that didn't go exactly like they had wanted.

Life is like a tapestry. When you look at it from underneath, it looks like a mass of mess. Random threads that seem to be tangled with no pattern. Yet when it is seen from above, the beauty of the planned artwork is evident. We only see life from here below. Many times it appears as a mass of mess, forgotten by the artist and left to random chance. That is so far from the truth. God has a plan for each of us, and although we can't see the pattern of the threads, He can. He is in control of all of them. We just have to trust and be obedient like Mary and Joseph.

Just like tapestry one of the most amazing pieces of artwork designed by God is a snowflake. Although their beauty is not seen by the human eye each one that falls has intricate, perfect details, designed for His purpose.  Just like us. Each person, designed by him, unique, different, beautiful in His sight, not seen at times by the human eye.

Wow, what an Awesome God we serve!

I gave the girls the brightest, pinkest, glitteriest, shiniest, snowflake ornaments for their trees I could find. To remind them each year that they are beautiful, unique, and designed for a purpose. I love each and every one of them and they teach me so much each Sunday that I am with them. One of my many reasons for loving #sundayinthesouth.

We decorated our trees with icing and sprinkles. The girls had fun decorating their trees and enjoying their cookie treats. The boys class was totally jealous! By the way, I am 34 and this is the very first time I have EVER rolled out dough and used my cookie cutters to make real Christmas cookies by myself! I told them I would accept my medal now! Especially since I baked them at 11:30 the night before...but you can hear about that in another blog post on another day.

Challenge Results and Some other things....

THE RESULTS ARE IN...DRUM ROLL PLEASE...

BEFORE

 AFTER

12.4 POUNDS AND 21 INCHES IN 24 DAYS...ANY QUESTIONS? 

(I personally think my feet look skinner.)

If this doesn't tell you anything else let it tell you this...The 24 day challenge works. It works. Plain and simple. If you do what AdvoCare recommends and you use the products the way they were designed it works. Here is a copy of the form I submitted so you can see where the inches came off. No tricks, gimmicks, real results on a real person, ME! I am still frustrated with myself for allowing the weight to come back and I will be doing another challenge starting January 2, 2014 to jumpstart my mission of 155 pounds. I was at 159 last March and I have every intention of getting back there by March 2014. I am however pleased with my results. I did it without even looking or checking off a list. I know how to do this. I just have to do it. I finished my challenge the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. I don't know how I did competition wise but I am proud of myself for sticking with it and finishing it. Yes, I enjoyed Thanksgiving. If there is one thing I have learned over the past almost three years (JAN 1 will be three years of me working on a healthy lifestyle and body) its that you can't obsess over everything you put in your mouth every minute of every day. Did I overeat? Probably. Am I totally off the wagon because of it? Not unless I allow myself to be. It's a day, a meal, a bite, a choice at a time. I know myself well. I know that I won't turn down alot of the dips, desserts, candy's or other foods that come with this time of year of the next few weeks so my plan of attack is taking my AdvoCare products and making sure I get a work out in at least 3-5 times a week. I didn't snack or sample food all day Thanksgiving day and I continued my AdvoCare products to help de-rail any "adverse effects" of all the food. Which leads me to the rest of my post. Thanksgiving.

We had our Thanksgiving dinner at my Granny's house this year. I made the dressing. Now keep in mind I don't cook. That doesn't mean I can't...It mean's I don't. I have gotten away with not taking anything to family gatherings for years because most of my family thinks I can't.  (Mama paid me to stay out of the kitchen as a TEEN) Shhhh! I think my Granny Bessie would have been so proud of me. It was perfect...not to dry and not to soupy. I made my Mama tell me how to make it like three times. She makes the best ever. Same recipe so I knew if I did it just exactly like she said it would be a hit. It was her Granny Bessie's recipe and it was delicious. I think they all were shocked! After my family dinner we took the little bit that was left to Chad's mom's house to share. I only had enough left for Chad to eat for Breakfast on Black Friday. Gross I know but he loves it. I was just happy I didn't burn it or the house down in the process. (I set off the fire alarm quite frequently remember) I will however be paying someone to "de-gut" the chicken if I make it again next year. That was awful! I mean really. Why can't they go ahead and do that when they process them anyway? 

Nana, Pate, Poppa, Lan, Me, Chad, Sam, Uncle Josey, and Granny

I purchased another set of extensions from Sally's Beauty Supply the day after Thanksgiving. The brand is Euronext. I got them on sale. I really wanted another set of Luxy's but I was trying to cut cost. As soon as I got them home I was disappointed. They were no where near as thick as my Luxy's. They are non-returnable so I thought oh great I'm stuck with extensions I can't use. I decided I would just mix them in with my Luxy extensions to pull some brown down into the blonde. Then I decided to give them a real shot. I went ahead and fixed my hair this morning and put them in. Curling them made all the difference in the world! I love them. I acutally like them as much if not better than the Luxy's for "every-day" wear. They are lighter and way more comforable. I have had them in all day and can't even feel that they are there. The only down side is they don't look good straight. I think you would have to have board straight hair to make them look right straight. I like my hair with a wave to it anyway so all in all I am happy with them. Also, really diging the length. They are 14 inch so they don't look so "I'm trying to be a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader"...I mean I would like to be one, who wouldn't? But since I am not (only because I can't stand the Cowgirls and I don't live in TX) I'm good with the shorter ones. Maybe I could talk Chad into moving to New Orleans so I could try-out for the Saintsations...okay never mind lost my train of thought. Last note on  hair. I am really liking the dark. I've had mixed responses to it. Some like it dark, others tell me they like me better blonde. My grandmother HATES it. Sorry Granny. It's just hair y'all. Just hair. It doesn't make me who I am or someone I am not. What it should tell you about me is that I am adventurous and I am not afraid of change. Try it sometime...if you do what you have always done you will get what you've always gotten.

#OOTD #SUNDAYINTHESOUTH

I haven't posted an #OOTD in a while so here you go...

Black and White Tribal Print Dress by Joel from Jewelry Just for Fun, Tribal Necklace and Hammered Cross Earrings by Premier Jewelry (Had a party and racked up in freebies!), Boots from Glitz & Glamour

Can I just say one more time how much I LOVE fall clothes. Especially all the pretty warm sweaters and leggings. I know that I am not a New York Fashion writer, I don't need anyone to tell me I don't work for Glamour or Vogue but can I just say I am proud that I was sporting the "printed" leggings and Piko tops LAST YEAR that are ever so popular this year? I realize I didn't start the trend but at least I know I am ahead of and "ON" trend. Not too bad for a 34 year old mom huh?! I know something "HOT" when I see it! It's funny I searched the WORLD WIDE WEB over looking for these. Found a store online devoted solely to leggings...some of which I am not sure were made for public viewing. But took a chance and ordered them because they were the only ones I even remotely could find that were the "type" I was looking for. Now, I can go to all of my favorite stores and buy as many pair as I want. 

Our Elf Reggie returned via Fireplace the day after Thanksgiving sporting his new "Team Elf" Jersey. (Elf attire can be purchased at Faulkenberry's in Philadelphia.) Reggie will return to the Penson home every year no matter how old my boys get. It's a really fun Christmas tradition seeing all the things our little Elf gets into. If you have small kids start this as soon as possible. You can find awesome ideas for "Elf" activities on Pinterest.

Black Friday was a huge success. I am almost done with my Christmas shopping.  Chad did most of it Thanksgiving night online at Amazon.com. They had amazing "Lightening" Deals. Especially on things that most boys want! My sis-in-law Chas, Celesta (my MIL), and my niece Hailey Brooke started at 3:30 a.m. on Friday. We hit JCPenny at 4:00 so we could get a free Mickey Mouse Snow Globe...."I got a snow-globe hey" (inside joke). We could have gone at 10:00 and gotten one. They had more than plenty. We were the only ones in the store! It was great. No pushing, shoving, etc. All the crazies must have been out the night before. No offense to my friends that braved that crowd. I shopped with them until around 10:00 then met my mom to shop for a while. My mama and I have been shopping buddies since I was a kid. We have always done Black Friday. I really didn't buy all that much or find any "AMAZING" deals. It was more about tradition, getting out, and spending girl time with the ones I love. Oh, and I never pass up a shopping trip!

CHALLENGE UPDATE AND SOME OTHER STUFF

Well, I promised to update you on my progress so here goes.

I am on day 14 so I have 10 days left of my AdvoCare 24 day challenge. I have done it without even looking at the checklist. That tells me two things...I have done it so many times I don't need a checklist and that I know what I am supposed to do to lose and maintain a healthy body and weight. I don't need a special "diet" or "program". All I need is to eat clean and use the high-quality nutritional and wellness products AdvoCare provides. I have not been hungry at all. I have really eaten alot. I eat five times a day. Three meals, two snacks. I have come up with some new creative things to eat during the max phase to change things up a bit. Breakfast this morning consisted of a sliced banana with natural peanut butter and granola on top. It was delicious! I have not had anything but water, spark, and a tiny bit of Trop 50 OJ (It's great 50 calories, less sugar. A must try!) No, I have not popped a top just to hear the sound either. Thought about it, decided I wasn't strong enough to handle it. I plan on going all the way to Christmas without one! Then we will go from there. I also tried some vegetable stir fry the healthy way. You just steam in the micro a few minutes to get tender then toss them around on the stove top in a dab of olive oil until the edges are seared slightly, that's how I like it anyway. So great! I even hosted a jewelry party and survived without breaking the rules. Which reminds me that no matter what is going on I can choose to eat right, and plan.

As of day 10 I was down 8 pounds (well 7.8 to be exact but I rounded up, ha!) I clearly need a pedicure and need to change that hideous polish, so excuse that. I am down some inches too...ok several inches but I am saving that for day 24 for you guys. (Insert a squeal here) I haven't had time to exercise due to my extremely busy schedule. I plan to start running again today. Walking, jogging, then running is what helped me drop weight to begin with and I am determined to do a 5K somewhere in 2014. It is a great stress reliever too believe it or not. I did scrub my house top to bottom this week which I think should more than count for exercise. Vacuuming,  sweeping, mopping, cleaning bathrooms, dusting, etc. must do something because I was sore the next day!


My sister-in-law and I got a wild hair to go Brunette for the fall and winter yesterday. This would be my sister-in-law that I have been able to talk into cutting her hair with me, growing her hair out with me, but NEVER changing the color of her hair. Literally, I only know her with blond, blond hair. I am so proud of her for going out on a limb and trying something different. She looks amazing!

I wanted the new Ombre look myself so my amazing hairdresser Pam put just enough blond accent in there to blend with my Luxy hair extensions (in dirty blond) to give me an amazing Ombre look with them. I also have a great fall look in brown with red and blond accents without the Luxies. PERFECT! 

I purchased this little jewel at a consignment store on Hwy 491 called Lanie Bugs. I have been looking for a piece like this for my kitchen for several years! I love it! It could not have been more perfect for my kitchen.  I plan on painting the bottom of my barn table and bar stool seats to match the turquoise soon. I wanted a new kitchen table but my Papaw helped me pick it out when I first got married and it has years of homework marks, and tiny scratches from the boys that I just can't part with. The buffet/hutch makes a perfect serving piece for parties or just to display my favorite kitchen things. Bought a Rooster at "Frank Tank's" this past week too. I never thought I would like using a "rooster" for decorations but he was the perfect colors for my kitchen so I brought him home with me. 

I will be back in a few days to update you guys on how I am doing at the end of the week closer to day 24. Right now I am just ecstatic that my jeans button again after just 13 days. I also have some fall OOTD's to catch you up on. Side note: Super happy about watching the new Superman movie tonight, I a slight Super Hero obsession, in case you didn't know. Happy Saturday all!

The struggle is real...

Hi Friends! It has been a while. My life has just been so busy I haven't had a chance to blog. We have celebrated 6 birthday, been to see the New Orleans Saints play, went to Tuscaloosa to Alabama's homecoming game, had a fall festival at church, Halloween, and many many other things. I have thought all morning about posting this blog post. I have been struggling with my weight, with exercise, with schedules, everything. I woke up this morning knowing I was starting an AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge but had an immediate feeling of defeat and self-pity. Why? Because I knew I couldn't have a diet coke? Get a grip Kellie! Which leads me to this...

I am sure some of your are dying three deaths right now because I put the scales on here. Lady's never tell their weight right? I mean my license still says 120, which is what I gave them when I got my very first license. All these years when the lady would ask has anything changed, "No ma'm". Liar, liar pants on fire! So why am I telling or "showing" you this? Because the struggle is real. Anyone that knows me knows that what you see is what you get. I don't do drama or fake. So this is it. Plain and simple. I have allowed "life" to totally de-rail my train, AGAIN. This is not what I had pictured for myself back mid-September (picture to the left wearing jeans I can not button and a shirt I can't get past my, well you know, at the moment) when I was totally "on" and motivated to get the weight I had put back on off and become healthier and more fit than ever. I thought I would have been at my magical goal weight and size right now. I had every intention to be. To have "Kelly Ripa" arms, fit in a pair of size 6 jeans, and most importantly be in the physical condition I needed to have been in to run my first 5k. The reality is I am not. I am further away than I was this time last year. What is even more real is that I will not ever, EVER, be able to eat cake everyday of my life, stop exercising, or most importantly not give my body proper nutrition and supplements and expect to  maintain a healthy, fit body. So if telling you this helps you to realize that you are not alone then that is my intention here. It is not to say "look at me", it is to say look at me, I struggle too.

If you think for one second AdvoCare products won't help you let me remind you where I was just a short period of time ago. This is when I was on product regimen, eating the "AdvoCare" way, not drinking sodas, and exercising at least 3-5 times a week for 30 minutes. It is not that I stopped using the products. I would hate to know where I would be right now if I hadn't been using the products at least sporadically here and there. This happened because of my choice to abuse my healthy lifestyle and kid myself into thinking I could just do what I wanted for a while. That because of stress and circumstances I "deserved" a break and just couldn't "diet" with everything going on. I read the statement "You are not a dog, do not reward yourself with food" on Pinterest I think under motivational quotes. That statement offended me. I was like if I want to reward myself with a GiGi's cupcake then by george I could. It was my calories and I would do with them what I please. However, it dawned on me this past week...that attitude is the same attitude that got me in this position in the first place. At 235 pounds, with mountain dew "As long as I am not over my calories for the day why does it matter that I drink them", at 195 and stuck at a plateau, "Diet drinks and don't have calories  and 100 calorie packs of cookies are only 100 calories so what does it hurt?". Don't get me wrong. I will eat a cupcake again. I will drink a diet coke again. I am not perfect nor will I ever be. I just have to come up with a way to "treat" or "reward" myself with something other than food when I'm "good". Make sense? 

So back to the struggle. I told you that today is day one of my challenge and I wasn't pumped, motivated, excited, or happy at all about starting today. I entered my team's "Drop a Pumpkin" by Thanksgiving Challenge and today was the very last day to start a challenge and still be eligible to compete. Although it was all I could do not to pop that can top seconds after my feet hit the floor this morning (had 2 left in a 12 pack of diet coke that I almost drank at midnight last night like I was going into surgery or something and couldn't eat or drink after midnight) I didn't do it. I mixed up the fiber drink to start the cleanse process and chugged that baby down. It's 2:25 p.m. and I think I have seen 15 food commercials, mainly Pizza Hut stuffed crust pizza commercials. Am I making it? Yes. Am I struggling? Not really. It is amazing how much better I feel after just one fiber drink,  a clean, healthy breakfast, catalyst, a clean, healthy lunch, and a spark. I have decided to read scripture from the Bible if I get really "hungry". Hungry meaning bored and just wanting graze and cabinet surf not truly hungry. The truth is you don't get "hungry" on a challenge if you follow the checklist and eat when you are supposed to. I feel like this is an opportunity to not only get my body in shape but work on my walk as a Christian as well. That is enough to make anyone feel unstoppable.

My plan is to blog about my progress. They may be short quick posts but hopefully I can squeeze in some posts and motivation for you guys. Here is my product regimen during a challenge. 

My 10 Day Cleanse Phase Product Regimen:

Days 1-3

30 minutes before breakfast: Fiber Drink

10:30: Catalyst, Spark

3:00: Catalyst, Spark

After Dinner: Omegaplex

Before bed: Herbal Cleanse Caplets

Days 4-7

30 minutes before breakfast: Pro-Biotic Restore

10:30: Catalyst, Spark

3:00: Catalyst, Spark

After Dinner: Omegaplex

Before bed: Herbal Cleanse Caplets

Days 8-10

30 minutes before breakfast: Pro-Biotic Restore & Fiber Drink

10:30: Catalyst, Spark

3:00: Catalyst, Spark

After Dinner: Omegaplex

My 14 Day Max Phase Product Regimen:

Days 11-24

30 minutes before breakfast: Before Breakfast MNS packet

After Breakfast: Two after meal MNS packets

10:30: Catalyst, Spark

30 minutes before lunch: Before lunch MNS packet

3:00: Catalyst, Spark

Before Dinner: Carb-Ease

After Dinner: Omegaplex

If you want to know more about the AdvoCare 24 Day challenge click the link below or find me on facebook. I am more than happy to help you get started with AdvoCare. It has made such an amazing difference in my life, it can for you too! 

ADVOCARE 24 Day Challenge INFORMATION

Let's Catch Up!

This week has been crazy busy. I will start with Tuesday...

Tuesday, after work would be when I was frantically trying to clean my house because I had a Girl's Night Spa scheduled at my house on Thursday. You see when you are as busy as we are you tend to treat your house like a hotel. Come in, throw your stuff down, eat, shower, sleep, get up, get dressed, leave, and repeat. It was looking like the "maid" forgot to show up. Needless to say, I couldn't do any talking on Tuesday!

Since I am the maid at my house I took a personal day off of work on Wednesday to to finish cleaning. I will spare you that Workin' Girl Wednesday Outfit of the Day. I am pretty sure you all have an old pair of "ratchet" shorts and one of your husband's old baseball t-shirts with bleach stains that you wear to clean in. I am also pretty sure you don't care to know where mine was purchased either. I did post an #OOTD #WorkinGirl outfit at the bottom from today.

SHOUT OUT TO THE HUBS:

So, Chad worked like hired help this week to help me get the house in decent shape inside and out. To me there is nothing hotter than a man that will run a vacuum as well as a lawnmower. Love and appreciate you Chad:)

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION

My precious friend Rebecca had asked me to be in another commercial for her amazing boutique, Glitz & Glamour. Clean house or not, I wasn't going to miss that! I finished as much as I could, hid some stuff in the closet, and started getting ready for the commercial. I went to Meridian to shoot the commercial. It was so much fun. We went to City Hall for the shoot. I personally thought it was really cool to have the opportunity to be in a commercial shot at the City Hall building of my Hometown. All of the "Glitz" girls were so "Presh" as Rebecca says. She had each of us styled perfectly. I love that she has clothes for all ages, shapes, and sizes. She is not afraid to think outside the box and bring a great look to her Meridian girls. She has some amazing new fall pieces in! You must like her on Facebook and definitely go by if you have the chance.

Here is the finished product! Look for it during Dancing With the Stars
next week on WTOK Channel 11!

Here are some pics from the shoot!

#OOTD #FASHIONFILE #GLITZGIRL

                                   Dress by Uncle Frank/Ivy Jane boots by Nature Breeze

Thursday night I hosted a Beauty Control Spa for a very sweet Friend, Spa Lady Lisa. I spent two hours with some precious family and friends doing facials, treating our skin to hand scrubs, lotions, and detox treatments. It was so nice to just chill. We had a great time and my niece Hailey Brooke snagged some funny photos while we had our lip "masks" on. I would put the other pics up but they may never come back to my house again if I do! HA! If you have never hosted a SPA DO IT! Lisa is a fabulous Spa Lady, she would love to help you and your girl friends spend a relaxing night together. You will be refreshed and so glad you did it! I can give you her contact info just ask!

Friday was School picture day and GAME DAY. I have not felt 100% this week. Probably due to running in MS heat in the middle of ragweed blooming season on Monday. I don't want to get worse and sitting out in the night air would not have been good. So no Game Day Glam for me this week. I spent the afternoon with my Lan Man just chillaxin' and watching movies. We watched the Life of Pi. It was an amazing movie. I highly recommend it to watch with your children. I was with my Tornadoes in spirit though. They played their hearts out last night. Tough loss but our heads are high and so is our spirit! #GOPHILLY #ALLTHEWAYTOSTATE

This leads us to today, Saturday. It is beautiful here in Mississippi today. College Football day! (Roll Tide Roll) Chad and I are hosting movie night for the Children's Ministry at church tonight. Our theme, football! The kids will dress in their favorite team apparel. We will have games, face painting, a bible story, hot dogs and snacks, and watch Air Bud: Golden Receiver. Can't wait to spend some time with my little munchkins!

I will try to do a better job blogging next week. I haven't had time to blog, or to exercise. I was kind of beating my self up about this but according to the My Fitness Pal Ap cleaning burns calories. I have burnt some calories this week! Being honest again...when I am not feeling great it is so hard for me to exercise and stay on track with my diet. I just want to taste food, mostly food that is not on the "plan". Does anyone else have that problem? I am back on my Arms mission starting today. I am running out of time. I may have to extend my goal deadline. Which leads me to my final thought for the day. I had a long conversation with someone yesterday about taking it a day at a time, a meal at a time, a choice at a time. Looking at the overall can be overwhelming at times. If you had told me two years ago that I would have lost 76 pounds and be any where near the size I am not, or at the fitness level I am at I would have laughed in your face. Truth is, I never really thought that I was capable, that I had that kind of will power. I didn't really set out to lose a certain amount, or be able to run 2 or 3 miles non-stop. I started out wanting to lose some weight, get control of my blood pressure, and be more happy in my clothes. Those little steps turned into strides, the strides into a jog, the jog into a run. The thing is there is no finish line. It is a non-ending marathon. Some days you sprint, others you drag yourself 5 inches. It's not the end of the world if you have to adjust your goals, it's a lifelong process. The important thing to remember is that any movement forward is movement in the RIGHT direction. You can do this, I can do this. One step at a time.