Our Christmas In Pictures

David with his new guitar shirt, wallet & candy!

Taylor with her "Learn to draw" book

Hannah with her Bratz doll

Taylor with her Pixos

Hannah and her new pink guitar

Our Christmas tree on Christmas morning

David with his new wheel for his playstation(which means he will be spending even more time on it, LOL)

A nativity set from my Momma

David and my brother in law Quincy(Crazy men, LOL)

My sister Sacha, brother TJ and Me

My sister Sacha, my momma, my brother TJ and Me

My sister, my Momma and Me

A British tradition-Crackers which have a prize and a paper crown-we're sportin em! LOL

Me and my sweet nephew Will

Thankful

I am thankful for~

1) That I made it through my third surgery this year and God had his hands on me all three times:)

2) My husband David who takes extra special care of me after surgery....he's a sweetie pie:)

3) My friends who helped me out with getting the girls to and from school, called to check on me, sent me well wishes, brought us food, and prayed for me..I LOVE YOU ALL!

4) My momma who loves me so much and went out of her way to help us out of a certain situation that lifted a huge burden off my shoulders-she teaches me how to have a giving heart every day!

5)Christmas specials on tv...make for great family time together:)

6) Yankee Candle's Christmas Cookies plug ins-AHHHHH!!!

7) This is the last week of school before Christmas vacation and that means a break from driving..YAY!

8) God's unwavering provision in my life..I love my sweet Jesus!

9) Lifesong church..can't say enough about the people there and the work that Jesus is doing through them:)

10) $3 prescriptions-ROCK!

11) The nurses at Hillcrest Hospital-it's probably my favorite hospital in the upstate

12)Lortabs are wonderful when recovering from surgery-just sayin!

The Power Within

All my life I have been the "fat" kid in my family and always the subject of ridicule. It left me with virtually no self esteem and scars to last a lifetime. It also instilled in me an "I can't" attitude and I used that excuse for almost every aspect of my life. After thirty two years, I think I have finally come to that point in my life where I truly know who I am and what I am capable of in life. It's obvious that my surgery/weight loss has inspired this change, but no matter the reason, I welcome it with open arms because it is long overdue!

298 pounds was what I weighed nine months ago and I was nothing but a miserable shell of a person. I had sunk to a point of no return and I needed a life line to pull me out of the darkness or I would never make it out alive. My life line isn't and won't be for everyone because my life line is a drastic measure and has been one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, but my life line was blessed by God and it has saved my life! My results are not typical. Some people who have gastric bypass surgery do not do as well as I have thus far and I often wonder why out of all the people to have this surgery, was I one of the blessed ones to do such amazing things and reach such remarkable goals, but I have and I am SO THANKFUL for that because it has brought me back to life and opened up a part of me that I never knew existed! In nine months, I've lost a total of 126 pounds and still going! I have gone from a size 28 pants to a size 12! I have 11 pounds to go to get to my goal of a normal weight of 160 for my height! If you would have asked me nine months ago if any of this was possible I would of said without a doubt-"I can't do this!" But now, nine months later, and many goals later, I'm about to embark on my next goal-A 5k race and then sometime next year, a half marathon! I would NEVER have imagined myself even wanting to try this, but now that I have found myself again, I've also awakened the power within me and I say "YES I CAN!" Any goal I want to achieve I now believe is only an arm's length away, all I ever have to do is just REACH OUT AND GRAB IT!

THANK YOU JESUS FOR OPENING UP MY EYES AND RESTORING THE POWER WITHIN ME TO BE ALL I CAN BE AND LEARNING TO NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN!!

Grateful

I have so much in my life to be grateful for. Here are just a few:)

~I am so grateful for a savior that loves me unconditionally despite all my flaws!

~I am so grateful for my sweet little family who make this life worth living.

~I am so grateful for my momma who loves with all her heart and has taught me to do the same.

~I am so grateful for the time we spent with our family during Thanksgiving last week.

~I am so grateful for God's provisions.

~I am so grateful for our heat in our home!

~I am so grateful for my friends..I love each one of them in their own special way:)

~I am so grateful to be able to celebrate the birth of our precious savior this month!

~I am so grateful for my health/weight loss...I have never weighed less than my husband and now I do!!