This time of year is always when people share in abundance everything they are thankful for. I used to be one of those people. I feel like the only time I took time to appreciate what I was grateful for was on the "required" holidays. The only time I said thanks to my parents and give them special notice was on Mothers day and Fathers day, quickly forgetting the other 364 days of the year that they help me. The only time I would acknowledge things I was grateful for was Thanskgiving, and not the other 364 days of the year.
Okay that may be a bit of an exaggeration however I know that I was not thankful enough every day of the year, and maybe I'm still not but I do know that I have come a long way. In two days from now, the day after Thanksgiving will be the 10 month mark of the passing of my father-in-law. Although I did not get the privilege to know him all of my life as my Husband and his brothers did, I was blessed to get to know him for quite a long time. There is not a day that goes by that I don't think of him in some way or that there is something that reminds me of him and the short time we did have together.
One of the main things that has changed about me since this unexpected event is my thankfulness. In every aspect this has changed. So often now I do take notice of tiny little things and stop to pause to really truly be thankful for them. I often get very excited over little small insignificant things that before I wouldn't have even noticed. I wouldn't have stopped to take a second look. I wouldn't have held my baby girl that much longer before putting her down, and the list goes on and on. I owe this to Dave because before I would not have stopped to realize how incredibly grateful I am for all of the amazing things in my life.
I reflect on this time last year when we took a family trip to Florida. Although not everyone was able to join us we did have a really great time at a family wedding. Memories that I will hold dear to my heart, and yet again be thankful for. This time last year Dave was dancing with Rylee as she was just giggling away. We had an explosive diaper that took 6 people to clean up, and lots of laughs with cousins. We had our last Thanksgiving dinner with Dave, and ate pumpkin fluff. These things may not mean anything to you, but for me, it is one more small thing I am grateful for. Again, find joy in the little things, for you never know what tomorrow may hold.
His chains are gone, he's been set free. Although we hurt here, we can be SO thankful that he hurts no more.
Again, another very long time in between posts…I wonder if I will ever get into the habit of writing regularly. I guess it depends how many out there are actually reading? I haven’t posted not because I don’t have anything to write but in fact have just had no time. Being back at work full time, a very busy toddler, and trying to keep up with the house and everything else that life entails is not an easy feat!
August and September are a very busy time at my work. I would get to work, look up and it was lunch, have lunch then look up and it was time to go home. The days went by very fast, which to be honest, I love when that happens. But on the flip side to that it also made it very tiring.
I will give you a few updates about life but first I will start with my weight loss since it is after all the reason for my blog. I did end up reaching my weight loss goal to hit 190lbs. I did not do it in the time frame that I gave myself since I had some unexpected things deter me slightly, but the important part is I did reach it! I was very pleased with myself when I stepped on the scale to see that I had hit that goal. My hard work and day to day efforts have been paying off.
Sometimes it feels like my weight loss is going very slow but if I stop to look back at how much I have accomplished in the last 19 months it is actually quite amazing. Since having Rylee I have lost 86 pounds (that number DOES include baby + fluid) and that would average a loss of 4.5 pounds a month. If you also take into consideration that I had a very hard time losing weight while breastfeeding and didn’t start to really be able to take it off until I started weaning Rylee then that is actually quite impressive (in my opinion anyways).
I think that so many times people want it to come off very fast, and get quickly discouraged if it doesn’t. They try fad diets and cleanses that don’t work, or work for the very short term before they put the weight back on. If you want to look at the simple solution you need to eat healthy and exercise. I do believe that you can use some products in conjunction with healthy eating and exercise but bottom line it boils down to those two things. I have been there and tried many things. I got tired of the yo-yo dieting and finally just admitted to what I didn’t want to hear. It was going to take work (lots of work), dedication, and commitment, but in the end IT IS worth it. I don’t lose 5 pounds a week as I know that is not realistic, but when I do lose 5 pounds, it stays off. Long term. I make daily changes that are attainable and I feel great about them. I still eat unhealthy food often but I incorporate it into my daily food and I move on. I don’t stress about it or feel guilty over it. I enjoy every bite, and if something is not good I throw it away! I don’t finish it just because I feel I have to!
Now that being said, it took me a long time to get here. It took me a long time to learn my body and how it works. But I have also not binged on food because I haven’t been depriving myself of anything. I eat very healthy most of the time but still make room for pizza, cake, and chocolate because let’s be honest I don’t want to live without those things (and you shouldn’t either).
I look back at where I was this time last year and I can see how far I have come! Where were you this time last year? Have you made the progress you wanted to make? Okay let me rephrase that, are you making the progress that is realistic for you to make? Not everyone has weight to lose; you may have other goals you are working towards but have you made the progress that is realistic? If not, sit down and really evaluate why. If this is important to you, you will do what it takes to get it done. If they result of reaching your goal is not worth the effort you need to put in the you will forever be spinning your tires on wet ground.
My next goal is a small one (last time was 10 pounds). This time my goal is to get to 185. I am not setting a deadline for myself because I know that this is a daily process and I am going to keep plugging away at it, one small change at a time. I don’t know yet what my reward will be for it but I am going to think of something good (maybe along the lines of some new make up). 5 pounds off is a lot to celebrate – it really is the small things!
A few other updates happening in the McNamara house:
We are currently fully renovating our upstairs bathroom! I mean a complete gut. I can’t wait to be able to have a nice bath in my brand new soaker tub!
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| Before demo |
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| Mostly demo'd |
When we bought our house in 2013 we knew that eventually the kitchen and the bathroom would need to be renovated since they were both really outdated. We had the roof replaced right when we moved in and we also did the downstairs bathroom as well by putting in a heated floor, new vanity, and new toilet along with a fresh coat of paint. Last year we did a major kitchen reno by painting the cupboards and adding hardware, putting up a backsplash, tearing down a wall, new countertop, new island, new ceiling fan, and of course a fresh coat of paint. So in terms of indoor renovations the bathroom is the last major renovation we have to complete. Of course there are little things as there always is in a house but all of the big things will be done.
Next year we will try to focus a bit on the backyard. We are hoping to be able to refinish our main deck and the pool deck, as well as put in a new pool liner. I know that the jobs will never be finished but I feel quite pleased that in terms of large jobs we should be done (knock on wood that we don’t have some disaster!). Well for now anyways, until a few years down the road we decide we want to change things haha. I plan on doing a garden again next year but will do things a bit differently than this year. My first year with a garden was definitely a successful one.
If you read our camping review you may have noted that we enjoy camping, quite a bit actually. I prefer camping in a tent over a trailer although there are definitely perks to a trailer! Sean and I knew that our current tent would not be big enough next year so at the end of the season clearance we bought a new tent that is really big (I mean REALLY big). We set it up to make sure it worked but we did not take a picture, so next year I will take a picture and show you the new beauty!
This weekend we had our first toddler flu experience. Poor Rylee was really sick on Saturday night but I was very thankful that it wasn’t a work night! I am glad to have that experience over and now I know what to expect next time. It is SO heartbreaking as a parent to see your child going through that. You just want to take it from them and be the one going through it. It was really hard to watch because she is just so little – but that being said she fully bounced back the very next day and was fine so I am glad that is over!
Christmas is coming up quickly (yes I am totally one of those people) and my gift idea list is getting really good. I have a lot of people figured out what I am going to get them which makes the holidays a lot less stressful for me being the planner that I am.
