World According to Shia

It's Okay Thursday #9

2012-03-08T11:59:00.001-05:00

It's okay...

to start to feel a cold coming on and think about calling in tomorrow to recoup so you can still do the race (you've been working towards) on Saturday.

to time your morning commute so you can here the daily prank call on the morning radio show before the station goes out because you're out of reach.

to just want to go home and go back to bed but you're too tired to even get up from your desk!

Don't forget to sign up for my giveaway...since I am inevitably getting sick...

I will announce the winner on Monday!

Good luck!

Je t'aime

2012-03-07T11:11:00.000-05:00

So according to a study, 2/3 of men say I love you first in the relationship.

On average men say I love you six weeks before their girlfriend.

I found this study interesting because Paul was the one

to say I love you first. Which even caught me off

guard when he said it. I mean don't get me wrong I was thrilled

but isn't that precisely the reason why I hadn't said it..

my guard was up! I think this study failed to mentioned

that women often have to hold back how they feel

in the beginning of relationships for the fear of "too soon"

and "you'll scare him off". We (women) WANT to be in love...

but we are just afraid to let you know so to be safe...

you say it first!

Speak up for your heart...say it when you feel it!

Last Friday was our 4 year anniversary!

I said recently commented on a blog that I sometimes miss

my old crazy single life...just a little but then

I thought about it and NAH...I'd rather be in love!

Even though the twists and turns had some excitement

this is the best part of the story....

I'm marrying my best friend and my greatest love on

(and yes...it's a THURSDAY...that is how we roll)

Images from Pinterest

Happy Birthday....

2012-03-06T10:36:00.001-05:00

Oreos!! 100 years old!!

The company was first founded March 6, 1912.

Oreos started off like this...

to now having tons of different varieties...

a cereal...(OMG I bet that is "nutritional")

c'mon cookies for breakfast...what kid doesn't love this?

to ice cream....

to yummy looking dessert recipes on Pinterest...

So if you want to buy some Oreos for a celebratory

dunk...look for these new Oreos...

Or if you are like me...celebrate with these...

Happy Birthday Oreos!

Don't forget to join my giveaway!! (click HERE)

Motivation

2012-03-05T14:30:00.002-05:00

So I have been thinking about motivation a lot lately. Right now I feel EXTREMELY motivated in my current weight loss goal but I feel like often motivation in general is like a light switch for me...when it is on it's ON and when it's off it might as well be glued in the OFF position.

So what gets me motivated? I let things get to the breaking point then I give myself a jolt and get it all fixed. This time I want to break that cycle. I want to keep that light switch on for good!

What keeps me motivated? I honestly feel like no matter what you need motivation to do...once you start doing it and make progress the ball just keeps rolling until you stop it.

Eliminate negative thoughts. Stop saying you can't...you can!

Besides...have you even tried?

Make what you are doing your biggest goal. If you truly care or

want something bad enough you will make it happen.

There is no shame in celebrating small milestones

but don't lose sight of the bigger picture.

Sometimes we'll get to a point where we give up (unintentionally)

because we accept a small milestone as good enough.

Hang in there...even if it seems like it will be forever

until you reach your goal just remember each day is progress.

Don't compare your results to others. You are the only one that

matters in reaching your goal so concentrate on you. If you compare

yourself to others, you might lose sight of what is

important (reaching your goal) and give up.

We all have moments of weakness when we feel the end

is too far away. You owe it to yourself to give it one more chance.

What's your motivation?

Off topic but STILL important...don't forget to join my GIVEAWAY!!

(click HERE!)

Best Things to Get in the Mail

2012-03-05T10:31:00.000-05:00

So Friday night I checked my mail and I received two exciting things....

First....

Mail from my niece! It was the sweetest and cutest thing ever!!

I am going to keep it forever!!!

and.....

MY FIRST CHECK FROM GOOGLE!!!

This was the whole reason I checked the mail...

and once I saw the envelope from Marissa I didn't even

finish searching through the stack for my check...lol.

So what should I do with this "free" money ($100)??

Any suggestions?

Don't forget to sign up for my giveaway

if you haven't already done so!! (click HERE)

Giveaway

2012-03-02T10:53:00.002-05:00

Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Anti-Chip Top Coat!!

Happy Friday all!! For the first time, I am doing a giveaway and there will be many more to come. I always find beauty products I love and I love to share if they work or not so why not start sharing the products too? So a friend of mine told me about this top coat by Sally Hansen. It dries super fast which is great for novice nail painter like myself. It also makes the nail polish last a bit longer because of the anti-chip. This stuff is magic! So here's what you have to do to enter....

You must be a follower of my blog and comment on this post!

Additional Entries...

1) Like me on Facebook and comment on my wall!

2) Follow me on Bloglovin and comment below that
you are following me on Bloglovin!

3) For 5 extra entries...snag my giveaway button and post it on your blog!
Comment on the post and tell me if you snagged it!!

Good luck...the winner will be announced next Friday (March 9th)! Comments will be closed Thursday night! I can't wait to see who wins!! This stuff is fabulous! Also, is it weird to be excited about your next giveaway when this one hasn't even happened yet??

J'Adore

2012-03-01T16:35:00.001-05:00

Instyle

Evan Rachel Wood's short hair!!

Doesn't she look fab!!!

Leap Day!

2012-02-29T11:46:00.001-05:00

Internal List Update

2012-02-28T17:12:00.000-05:00

So don't we all seem to always have a million things going on? Well last year around this time I gave a little update (click HERE) as to what was swirling around in my mad brain of mine so I thought there is no time like the present to do this again...perhaps it will get me back on track of some things I have let slip (ahem blogging...lol).

1) Writing ~ With great strides come great pauses...I guess. I feel like writing has totally tanked for me lately. But instead of focusing on the pause...I'll tell you about the strides. So first, I now have 134 followers! I still can't believe I hit 100! I thank all of you that read and comment. It truly means a lot to me. Also, I have written one article and it was published online. I was pick of the day over on Bloggers.com and I've gained about the same amount of followers over there. Also, with my blog, I feel like I have made great friendships!

2) Exercise More ~ Imagine there was a little box to put a check mark in. I have been working out like mad and I still want to work out more...lol. I really want to start running on the treadmill either before work or after. No more excuses...I gotta do this!!

3) Work less ~ I think before when I said work less ~ I think I really meant stress less about work. Mind you I still have moments when I want to fly off the handle and scream at everyone around me...but I now just approach these situations differently. It's pretty crazy how zen I have gotten. I just keep reminding myself that people do not change therefore situations with said people will not change so I just need to change how I react to said people and said situations. It's definitely made life a lot better!

4) Weekend woes ~ Well now that I am trying to stay active and exercise...I spend a lot of time doing active stuff on the weekends. Especially hanging out with all my munchkins (nieces) they definitely keep me moving. I've really cut back on my tv time. Weekends and week nights. I now try to practice my sleeping rules (click HERE).

5) Get a hobby ~ seriously folks this is something that will plague me for life. I have never been one to say that I have a "hobby". I mean I am sure tons of what I do on a daily basis can be called a hobby but anytime someone asks...what is your hobby...I got NOTHING!

6) Save more money ~ Like I said on my last post about this...I don't spend much ... I save save SAVE but there is always room for improvement. One thing that I think has drastically improve my savings is...not eating out for lunch. I have been packing my lunch for awhile now and I've worked it into my mornings so there is no more...not enough time excuses or I forgot.

7) Count calories ~ again imagine there was a little box to put a check mark in and put a big CHECK! I have been counting points (I am doing Weight Watchers) for about a month and a half. It has been great. Don't get me wrong I thought about not posting anything for Saturday because I went to my parents' house and felt like I ate WAY too much but I told myself...post it and get over it. Turns out it wasn't even as bad as I thought. I look at it like this....how can I make any difference if I don't keep track of what I am doing.

8) Cut coupons ~ okay this is one that is just NEVER going to happen for me. Most of the items that have coupons ... I don't use ... then keeping track of the coupons, etc...OYE...just too much for me! Props to all of you that do...I just don't think I ever will.

9) Drink more water ~ remember that little box...so this is definitely something I have improved upon...am I 100% ~ no I have had 2 Diet Rootbeers today...lol. I have an app called Waterlogged it really helps keep me focused on drinking water but come on...sometimes you need something BESIDES water. I really try to at least drink all my water for that day THEN drink a diet soda (or two...lol).

10) Stop going to Starbucks ~ well since they closed the one right across the street from where I work it has decreased drastically! I do occasionally stop in the morning for some tea and free WIFI to answer emails before I get to work...lol. I have cut out my coffee from there though...too many points...but occasionally I will get a Tall. I use to make fun of people that got Talls...I mean if you are gonna do it...do it VENTI...but sigh alas I am a Tall.

11) Okay so now I am eating breakfast but I am not eating enough points for breakfast so a little more work needs to be done.

12) Hair ~ sounds crazy but I used to be so obsessed with my hair growing. I just had to get like 3 inches cut off because it was SOOOO LONG!!! My new hair obsession though is...the color...last time I got a glaze done (it basically is a semi-permanent color with some shine booster) they used one with a little more red...my hair was this amazing dark auburn. Now I want to actually dye my hair that color.

New things on the agenda....

13) Blog more...I really need to get back to a rhythm since I took away valuable blog time with exercise.

14) Put my journal on my ipod touch...I have been not carrying it and feeling naked. This is another reason why blogging magic doesn't happen...no ideas when I need them.

15) Honeymoon & my blog...how is this going to work...another montage?

16) Wedding Dress shopping ~ it's happening next month people...like 3/18 to be exact!

17) oooh I want one of those super cute signatures for the end of my blog...any ideas on how I can make that happen!

Well I hope you don't have this many things swirling around in your head....what's on your internal to do list?

Guest Post!

2012-02-27T12:50:00.000-05:00

Hi, everyone! I'm Jackie from Eat Love and Style, where I blog about fashion, food and life three of the most important things to me. I'd like to thank Shia for having me guest post and share a recipe for you. When I want to make a simple and inexpensive meal for my family I whip up this easy recipe that I adapted from a co-worker. There isn't a name for this delicious dish so I just like to call it "penne pasta, italian sausage and pesto sauce. Now you can use any pasta you'd like or make your own pesto but remember this is an inexpensive meal. This dish is also perfect for those romantic dinners at home for two. So break out your nicest china and pour a glass of wine and make your night tasteful.

Ingredients
Baby spinach
Whole wheat penne pasta (any brand of your choice)
Johnsonville mild Italian sausage
Classico pesto sauce
Buitoni Parmesan cheese

1. First take your sausage links create any size meatballs and set aside.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions.
3. While pasta is cooking, cook your sausage and set aside.
4. Once pasta is cooked drain and set a side.
5. Take your pesto and pour entire sauce in a pot and cook with spinach.
6. Once spinach has wilted place pasta and sausage with sauce and spinach.
7. Stir all ingredients and cook for 10-15 minutes and serve.

I hope you enjoy this fantastic meal and let me know if you guys like as much as I do.
Jackie

Jackie ~ thank you so much for sharing this quick and easy recipe with us. It looks so yummy I can't wait to make it!!

Guest Post!!!!

2012-02-24T00:00:00.000-05:00

Hi guys!!! My name is Jovanna and I’m the blogger behind Lavender Dreams. My blog is a place where I share my love of dancing and clothing, my life as a student, and of course crafting. Along with the blog I own an Etsy shop named after my sister’s blog.

I started dancing 5 years ago and within a year I realised that dancing is much more interesting than Finance (that’s what I’m studying). So for the past 4 years I’m dancing salsa and kizomba almost every day. The happiest moment of my life was some months ago when I was asked to work as a salsa instructor in a gym. Since then salsa choreography and instruction is my daily routine. J

Blogging started as a way to express my love about fashion. I have a huge wardrobe since my sister left in the UK (she left everything back) so I thought it would be great to share my creativity with others!

Today I'll share some tips with you on how to be stylish even if its freezing outside. All over Europe its freezing so I think those tips would be really useful!

♥ Layers. Wear lots of layers, double socks, double shirt, always have a blazer or another thing that I really like is a dress, double tights and sweater. I assure you there is no way you will get cold J

♥ Drink water When the temperature is low you should keep your body hydrated in order to avoid wrinkles, damaged dry skin and lips.

♥ Water proof mascara. I don’t usually wear make-up but when I do I just wear mascara and a bit of blush. Thats it..ready to go! It’s better to wear water proof mascara when its freezing outside; you don’t wanna look like a clown with black tears (or do you?). Also wear a vivid colour on your lips. I prefer red lipstick during winter and pink during summer.

Those are just some of my tips and tricks to minimise cold during winter. It's not rocket science, I know, but if you're interested into seeing more on my blog, just pay me a visit HERE. Thank you Shia for allowing me to guest post.

Have a great day everyone,

Xo,

Jovanna ♥

Thank you so much Jovanna for guest posting...I just love your style. Stay tune Monday for another guest post from Jackie over at Eat, Love & Style!!

It's Okay Thursday #8

2012-02-23T10:52:00.000-05:00

So it's Thursday again...time to join up with

Amber and Neely and tell us all what you think

is okay today.....so for me....

It's okay...

to take two days off from drinking nothing but water...OMG sometimes you just want something with flavor!! Back on the wagon today though...it's pretty bad when your water logged app is screaming at you because you haven't entered any water!

to stay up until 3:00 am on Tuesday night finishing Sophie Kinsella's new book...I've Got Your Number....what can I say it was soooo good I couldn't put it down! Also, since I got it from the library and it's new I only had 7 days to read it...so I felt pressure...so I read it in two...lol.

to then go to bed last night at 9:00 pm...hello I was tired from staying up until 3:00 am!

to still hit the snooze even when I went to bed early. It's just part of who I am...I am a snooze button pusher!

that I am super excited Paul is working late tonight so I can watch all my "crap" tv on DVR! Hello I still haven't seen LAST week's Jersey Shore!!

that Jacksonville has been looking a lot like Seattle out the window. I guess it is just preparing me for my honeymoon!

that yesterday I didn't get to walk the bridges nor did I make it to the gym...hello I was tired (3:00 am remember)...sometimes exercise just can't happen in a day.

it's okay to see that a new magazine is up at the newsstand then immediately start thinking your mailman is stealing them...then remember you haven't checked your mailbox in like 2 weeks.

to risk being a minute late to work to check said mailbox and TADA .... magazines!

to love that yesterday when you tried to trick your niece on the phone (by talking in a british accent) she still knew it was you (she said...I know it's you Circle [that is what she calls me])

to be BFFs with a 5 year old! It just makes me so happy when my niece tells me that we are BFFs. I did mention to her that one day when she is older she won't want to hang out with me anymore and her reply was...why? cuz you'll be old and dead? um no. why? cuz you'll be mean? I give up...we will just be BFFs forever!

to play what if we were the same age with your 5 yr old niece...we would apparently have the same shoes, the same bookbag, the same teacher, sit in the same seat on opposite rows so we would sit by each other, the same bike, the same lunchbox, the same....it went on forever!

to get a little sad that she is turning 6! She has grown up soooo fast!

to miss Kaelyn (2 yr old niece) ... I haven't seen her in two weeks...feels like forever...she is the sweetest lil munchkin.

to think Leah (1 yr old niece) looks exactly like my sister did when she was little. It's kinda funny how it has turned out with my nieces...I have no kids and NEVER will so my sister Nicole has two...Marissa who is 5 looks a lot like me (cuz she looks like my mom and I look like my mom) and she has Leah who is 1 and looks exactly like her. My sister Debra has one ... Kaelyn who is 2 and looks exactly like her. It's funny too because their ages are a lot like our ages. My mom has even said that once when they were all running around her house she felt like it was like us girls running around again.

to give your friend pep talks about starting her own blog. She's having stage fright over her first post...I just looked back at my first posts...my first post was about Mondays...see it doesn't have to be masterpiece straight away!

to love looking back at posts. I can literally get caught up in hitting "you might also enjoy" on my blog...I'll think...DANG I have written some great stuff!

to go to a luncheon yesterday and try your best on not blowing all your points then get back to your desk and find out that even your best intentions were bad. Sometimes you just have to live and learn. SEE THIS IS WHY I DON'T GO TO LUNCHEONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

to be a little sad at the luncheon...you see...my boss passed away December 2010 from brain cancer...and yesterday I saw a bunch of people that we used to work with a lot and it made me miss Ray. He was such a great boss!

to realize that there are certain people in your life that no matter what you will always remember and treasure those times you spent with them.

Well before I start tearing up and have to put...to cry at work as one of my entries I am going to sign off.

Don't forget to link up with Amber and Neely and do a post about what you think is okay!!

Thinking....

2012-02-22T15:37:00.001-05:00

So lately instead of getting my daily fix of brilliance

by blogging...I have been thinking a lot. You know when you

are just stuck in that phase where you can tune everything out

and your mind is just whirling with thoughts.

....not necessarily bad thoughts...

not worries...just thoughts....you know....thinking....

you have brilliant thoughts, great ideas and new hopes.

Doesn't it just feel so cozy?

Have you ever just wondered? You know about everything.

You get so deep into wondering you forgot what that

first thing was that you wonder. What started all this wondering....

more wondering.....

Sure, it can feel like your not being productive but why stop?

Stop thinking start doing....right?

I'm thinking...something just seems wrong about that.

What have you been thinking?

images from Pinterest

OMG OMG OMG OMG

2012-02-20T11:28:00.000-05:00

My blog was picked as Editor's Pick of the Day

on Bloggers.com (a blog directory)!!!!

How awesome is that??

Happy President's Day!

2012-02-20T10:31:00.001-05:00

Well today is one of those special days when the whole country is off for the day...yet I am sitting at work. Good times right!

Well I guess the silver lining is ... I won't have to fight traffic on my way home tonight!

I am sooooo sleepy today...hopefully this coffee kicks in soon!

Well to all of you at work (which is probably just me)

and to all of you off today....

Rainy Friday

2012-02-17T14:45:00.001-05:00

images from Pinterest

You can't make this stuff up!

2012-02-16T13:05:00.002-05:00

Okay so I just went to do my daily bridge walk and it was sprinkling when I got outside of the building so for fear that it would start to downpour I decided to do the stairs in the building. I work on the 19th floor so I went up to 19 and back down. I am not going to lie...there was a moment when I had to stop because I thought I was going to throw up.

The best part is…apparently they never wipe down the banisters so my hand was covered with black dirt and I guess I must have wiped my face because when I got back upstairs I had a hitler mustache….

How about that irony!! Also, please know that I rode the elevator back up and two chicks on the elevator kept looking at me! So I will forever be known as the girl in the elevator with the hitler stache!

It's okay Thursday #7

2012-02-16T11:21:00.002-05:00

It's okay...

1) to be HAPPY it is Thursday so you can post an "It's okay Thursday" post!

2) regift your Valentine's Day candy to your 5 yr old niece ~ she won't care...candy is candy to a 5 yr old!

3) to take a break from drinking nothing but water and have like 3 diet rootbeers in a row! I mean they're diet!!

4) to wear the same thing every Saturday morning to weigh in! It's called the control in the experiment!!

5) to hang out with your sisters so you can use their kids for exercise.

6) to embrace the idea of getting married...post coming soon. (Teaser...remember when Carrie (Sex and the City) freaked out in the dress shop trying on that crazy wedding dress and she realized she was missing the bride gene....well...stay tuned).

7) to have bought like every accessory available on ebay for my new ipod touch.

8) to be excited that I got 25 days off work for my wedding/honeymoon! 25 DAYS PEOPLE!!!

9) to download a countdown app on my ipod for our wedding...any idea how I can get one on here??

10) to have wedding on the brain...hello it will be here before I know it!

11) to appreciate that for once Paul's need for an itinerary for every vacation is working to my advantage...he is helping with all the arrangements for the wedding...he just presents like 5 things and I get to pick...how great is this for wedding planning!

12) to feel bad for not posting as much lately and commenting on your blogs. I am really sorry that I have been so MIA but hopefully soon I will get into a new routine.

Don't forget to link up with Amber and Neely!!

Lunch Hour Workout

2012-02-15T12:09:00.000-05:00

So I have been walking at lunch instead of blogging

hence the absence of random brilliance on here.

So I thought I would share some pics of my walk...

One day last week I took a different route...

started off over the blue bridge....

Saw this on my walk...

Getting further away...

Here's the Stadium...if anyone cares about the Jaguars.

My friend Tana and I are walking the Gate River Run

in March so we are doing the bridges to train for this beast.

Oh how tame it looks from this far away but it makes that

first monster look like child's play!!

On the way back the bridge was up but

nothing went under...weird!

Random thoughts about the bridges...

So I thought the first bridge was steeper than

the blue bridge because it doesn't raise but I noticed

something when I was taking pictures.....

The red arrow is where the boats come through

because there is a train track across the river

and the track lifts at that spot...so why is it so steep?

Funny pic...

A pay phone...Taylor & I used to run on this dock

and I never saw this....it would have been a little reassuring

that I could have called 911 to come and get me if I died from running!

Okay I just realized I didn't check for a dial tone...it might not even work!

Okay so there is still a payphone and "we"

still do this?? REALLY??

So this is what I have abandoned my lunch break blog sessions for.

Hopefully soon, I will get on a new blog schedule and get back on track!

FINGERS CROSSED!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T09:39:00.003-05:00

Happy Monday

2012-02-13T09:46:00.001-05:00

Despite it being Monday (and 40 degrees in Florida

where it has been like 70 all winter) and having to take

my BRAND NEW car to the dealership

AGAIN...I am happy cuz look at my

Starbucks cup!! Super cute right!

The only thing that could ruin my

mood is looking up how many points are in this

cup ~ I am thinking 7...it's 6! YAY!

{Still kinda bad but hey not 7!!}

So I know I have been MIA...I am working on

it...I promise and to make it up to all of you

I will be having my FIRST GIVEAWAY soon!

I even made my own button for it...you heard

that right folks...I MADE A BUTTON!!

Stay tuned for the Giveaway!!!

Guest Blog!

2012-02-09T00:00:00.000-05:00

A LITTLE ABOUT ME: My name is Samantha Maria. I am 23 years old and… for as long as I can remember, I was considered overweight. One of my first memories consists of my mother putting on a pair of black batman jeans and saying “oh you must have lost some weight because they fit you better.” I must have been 3 years of age or so. From then on, there has not been a day in which I did not struggle with my weight. In elementary school, I was tortured by other students, so badly, that I would purposely pretend to be sick just so I didn’t have to go to school. I hated my life growing up. I didn’t have many friends, I couldn’t buy any normal clothes (back then there was no JR. plus sizes- only old women fashioned clothing in plus size which is what I wore and got made fun of), and I just didn’t fit it. As I got a little older, I forced myself on several diets and was constantly yo-yoing in my weight. When I say yo-yo I mean like yo-yoing 80 pounds hear and there. I would loose 80, then gain 90, then loose 70, then gain 80. I can’t remember a day that I wasn’t on a diet and wasn’t thinking about what I was eating. My life revolved around food and the scale was my ball and chain.

Last year, I had had enough. I weighed the most I have ever weighed and I was the biggest size I have ever been. I was so uncomfortable with every aspects of my life. I couldn’t walk for more that 10 minutes with out something hurting, I couldn’t bend down, I couldn’t fit into ANYTHING, and I couldn’t get comfortable enough to sleep… It was ruining my life. I had gotten so depressed that I began to think my only way out was to end it all. But then, one day, I ran into an old friend from high school. I couldn’t believe it was him. He had always been a very large kid growing up and this kid that stood before me was a toothpick! He told me he had had gastric bypass and that I should have it done too. I had always known about gastric bypass, but I never looked into it for myself thinking I was too young and I would never be able to afford it. After the advice he gave me, I came home and basically spent the next two months doing a whole bunch of research and decided that this is what I need to do.

After doing months of research and going to a bunch of doctors appointments, I was approved by my insurance company for the surgery. On March 28th 2011, my new life began.

THE PROCEDURE:

The best way to understand what happens is to watch a video:

As one can see, the RNY-Gastric Bypass surgery is no a simple surgery, in fact, it is considered quite invasive. As with all surgery, complications are indeed a possibility. Statistics show now that about one patient in 200 will not survive the surgery immediately after. This number is highly variable depending on how "high risk" you are as a patient and also depends on how experienced the team is that is taking care of you. The most common cause of death is usually a pulminary embolus (which is a risk with ANY SURGERY) or peritonitis (infection in the abdomen) from a leak. Other risks include: wound infection, incisional hernia, stomal stenosis, stomal ulcer, gallstones, blood clots, leaks, and some long term risks such as vitamin deficiencies.

WHY WOULD ANYONE HAVE THERE INSIDES ALL SCRAMBLED UP?

To truly get an understanding of why anyone would want to have their whole digestive tract rearranged and accept the risk that come with it, one really needs to understand morbid obesity. Obviously, weight gain occurs when more calories consumed than the body burns, and excess calories are stored as fat (adipose) tissue. However, genetics are proving to play a much more significant role in metabolism, appetite, and weight gain. People have genetic codes that can get “turned on” from environmental stimuli throughout life. More studies are showing that people who are able to get morbid obese have some of these “turned on” as a result of one or more reasons. For example, In our body, the hypothalamus acts a “thermostat” of the body and regulates basically all hormone function. A normal human’s hypothalamus signals the body, through a series of hormonal reactions, to regulate normal body weight. If a normal person (weighing say 130) was to eat little more one week, the hypothalamus would tell the body to compensate for it by using more energy to maintain that 130 weight. However, in people who have the ability to become morbidly obese, evidence is showing that the hypothalamus system is thrown off and sets the natural body weight at a much high weight (say 230). So if a person who is morbidly obese tries to diet, the hypothalamus thinks that the body is under famine and wants to compensate for it, cause the body to try and store EVERY CALORIE IT CAN, and producing hormones that make you hungry (Leptin) . Hence why people gain so much weight after previously loosing weight.

In addition, age plays a significant role in weight gain as well. When children consume excess calories, hyperplastic obesity occurs: the process in which excess calories are converted into new fat cell. In adulthood, new fat cells do not form. Instead the adipose tissue that already exists just gets filled up with fat and the cells get larger. “Since diet and exercising can only REDUCE the size of fat cells, not eliminate them, persons who were obese as children can have great difficulty in losing weight, since they may have up to 5 times as many fat cells as someone who became overweight as an adult.” (http://www.gsbwc.com/content/general/obesity/understandingobesity.html)

Lastly, there are many medical disease that can cause weight gain. For example, Cushing's Syndrome, Hypothyroidism, neurological disturbances (such as damage to the hypothalamus), and consumption of such drugs to help with disease (such as steroids, antipsychotic medications, or antidepressants).

Now, the reason why someone would have his or her guts misconstrued with the RNY-Gastric Bypass is:

1. For some unknown reason, the hypothalamus shuts off its weight thermostat, and resets in about 18-24 month later and resets at the weight you now instead of a morbidly obese weight. Also, turning off the hunger feedback mechanism, so you don’t get hungry often.

2. A person is basically guaranteed to lose 60-90% of there excess body fat….which, if you are looking to loose over 100 pounds, is significant.

3. You now have such a small stomach; it forces you to not eat a lot anymore. You get full after a few bits of food!

4. Part of the intestine gets “bypassed” as food goes down, so less calories get absorbed

5. Because many sugars get absorbed in that part of the intestines that gets “bypassed”, it has a incredible reaction with type 2 diabetes, in which many patients go into a permanent remission and can stop taking medication before they leave the hospital directly after surgery.

As of now, I am almost 10 months out from surgery, I am down 112 pounds, I went from a size 20/22 to a 12/14 and from size 2x to medium so far. I have not felt this good in a really long time!

The reason I decided to write about this is because I don’t usually let people know about my surgery just because many people criticize it. I’m not trying to tell everyone that is overweight that they should have the surgery, it isn’t right for everyone and many people may not need such an extreme way to loose weight. The truth is, that most people who weighed what I weighed will never really get a taste of being thin, and if it wasn’t for this surgery giving me the little boost I need, I would never be as healthy as I am now.

I hope you all can find a little inspiration in my story. Even if you do not need to loose over 100 pounds, just know that you are not alone and many people struggle along with you. For some people, loosing those last 10 pounds is just as difficult as loosing 110 pounds. As women, we need to support each other and accept each others individual beauty. We should not judge other by the way they look and as long as they are healthy, size should not matter. We need to look deeper and really find inner beauty and bring out each others confidence. In this world, it is very sad because women have become so obsessed with what the media tells us to look like. It is our job, to bring back what really is important and for us to rename what beauty is and should be!!

Although I am not yet at my goal weight and many would still consider me overweight, I feel good, and feel I look good for the first time in my life. My life has dramatically changed since I have lost those 112lbs, and it is continuing to change daily. Before surgery, I had gotten up to 271 lbs. At that weight, on a 5’4” frame, I couldn’t do anything. I could bend down to clean, I couldn’t get comfortable to sleep, I couldn’t walk for very long, my back and feet hurt constantly, I had no clothes that fit, and I wouldn’t leave my house because of embarrassment of running into people who knew me (which I really am ashamed of). I basically just hated myself and put my life on hold, telling myself “ I can’t do that because I’m too fat”. But now, all of that is gone. I am able to do things I have not been able to do in such a long time; everyday, simple things that many people take for granted. For example, being able to go into a store in the mall and fit into clothes, being able to fit into a movie theater seat, feeling sexy and wanting to buy cute under garments, and being able to cross my legs, and I am now able to do 1 hour on the elliptical without pain, just to name a few. Sometimes, I look in a mirror, or catch a glimpse of my reflection, and I think… that girl is pretty, and then I realize… “wait…that’s me? NO WAY!”

I honestly don’t think I am used to living a skinny life yet. I know I am not a supermodel, nor will I ever be, but loosing this weight has helped me realize that you do not need to look like a supermodel to look and feel beautiful. It has made me realize that there are more important things to making one beautiful as well. It’s not only on the outside; it really is how a person carries them self and the confidence that one has that makes them truly beautiful. A person who is confident shines at any size, and their rays reflect on other people, making them feel good, and bringing out their confidence as well. I have never had confidence before as I do now, and it is amazing how life changing it is.

I should have felt this way when I weighed 271 lbs because weight should never make a person feel as small as I felt, but unfortunately, for me, it drained my confidence. I practically put my life on hold through that time. That is why I feel it is so important for me to spread the message that at no matter what weight you are, no matter what size you are, never let it hold you back. Just because you don’t fit the “standard” does not mean you are not beautiful and it does not mean you cannot be successful. I should have realized that even at my heaviest because I wasted a lot of time hiding in my house and putting my life one hold.

One month after surgery....

Recent photo...

I also want to give a special thanks to Shia for allowing

me to post about my life on her blog! Thanks Shia!

Samantha,

Thank you for sharing your journey on my blog. It is truly inspirational. Check out her blog HERE!

♥Shia

Self Image

2012-02-07T14:55:00.001-05:00

Self image is how you see yourself.

Self image includes:

how you perceive your appearance - which can be different that how others view your appearance.
how you perceive your personality
how you perceive what kind of person you are
how you perceive others like you
how you perceive your status

Is self image and self esteem the same thing? No. Self esteem is how you feel about yourself. Self image is how you see yourself and how you believe others see you. They are closely related but not the same thing. If you have a poor self image it can also make your self esteem low.

Self image is all about your perception.

How you perceive yourself is important because it affects

behavior, thinking and relationships.

Your perception of yourself may differ from how others actually

see you. Your perception of you is influenced by inner thoughts

and beliefs. You can have a distorted view of your image based

on your self esteem. You may have a negative view about

yourself and usually if this is the case you are highly critical of yourself.

We all have moments when we feel bad about ourselves.

The key is to make changes, here are some ways to

improve your self image....

Make a list ~ write down all the things you love about yourself ~ include personality, talents, skills and appearance.
All the negative thoughts that can cloud your judgment need to be extinguished. Focus on the positive and eliminate all the negatives. Which can mean forgetting all the negative things that have happened to you. These negative memories can pop up as an excuse. Well just like before, ________. Start fresh with positive thoughts and make new positive memories by overcoming the negative memories.
Let go of childhood labels.
Receive a compliment? Write it down and keep it handy! If you haven't received one recently, give yourself a compliment! So when you fall victim to the negative thoughts or memories you can see something positive.
Have you received criticism? Don't beat yourself up...use it to promote a better action.
Received a hurtful comment? Sometimes mean comments can appear to be criticism. However learn to tell the difference. If someone is just saying something to you to be mean and hateful perhaps it is time to confront them on how they are making you feel and/or eliminate interaction with this person.
Question yourself. Is your self image true? Why do you perceive yourself like you do?
Make some changes ~ a better self image isn't going to just happen overnight. There is some work involved. Find what will work for you (ex. new clothes, haircut, new behaviors, new friends, etc.)
Make some goals ~ it can be anything (just make sure they are realistic and measurable). The sense of accomplishment can boost your self image.
Stop comparing yourself to others! Haven't you heard that saying...the grass isn't always greener.
Remember that you are you and that is the greatest thing you can be! We are all unique!
Laugh and smile! Relax and don't take everything so serious! You'll be surprised about how well others respond to you when you are happier.
Exercise ~ a little goes a long way and exercising releases endorphins that make you feel happier!!
Acceptance! Embrace the things about yourself that are true and start thinking about them in a positive way. However, make sure that what you are defining as true is actually true. No one needs to define themselves as ugly. This is not a truth. Everyone is beautiful...find a way to embrace it and believe it about yourself. Saying to yourself "I am fat"...again not a truth...weight loss is always an option...it just takes work.
Remember how far you have came...the journey is always part of the process.

Remember self image is not permanent.

The greatest thing about life is that it is always changing

so your self image is also constantly changing.

The definition of a healthy self image is learning to accept

and love yourself and it also means being accepted

and loved by others. I have always said...you can't

be loved by someone until you love yourself.

How can you have a positive self image with low self esteem?

You can't. You need to work on it as well. Low self esteem is

basically deadly for your self image. Low self esteem can

affect your relationships, your health, your job, everything. Making

changes an go hand in hand with developing a positive self image.

Here are some steps to feel better about yourself

and therefore boosting your self esteem.

Identify things that trigger low self esteem - like a presentation at work or school, a crisis at work or home, a challenge with a spouse, loved one, co-worker or friend and life changing situations like losing your job, moving, etc.
Once you identify the triggers, pay attention to your thoughts. This includes your self-talk - what are you telling yourself in these situations? Are these thoughts rational (based on fact and reason) or irrational (based on false ideas).
Your initial thoughts on a situation are probably not the thoughts you need to follow. You need to teach yourself to not jump to the negative so when you are put in the same situation you can be a cheerleader for yourself rather than Debbie Downer.
Get rid of the all or nothing thinking. Nothing is all good or all bad. Stop saying "I never", "I can't", "I've always", etc.
Stop only seeing the negative and dwelling on it, it causes a distortion of your view of a person or a situation. Ex. I made a mistake on that ________ and now everyone will know that I can't _______.
Stop turning positives into negatives. Which means stop rejecting your achievements and other positive situations by insisting they don't count or matter. Ex. I only did well because it was easy.
Stop assuming negative conclusions. Which means you reach a negative conclusion when no evidence supports it. Ex. My friend hasn't replied to my email, I must have done something to make her mad at me.
Stop mistaking feelings for facts. Which means often we can confuse feelings/beliefs with facts. Ex. I feel like a failure, so I must be a failure.
Stop putting yourself down. Which means stop insulting yourself, using self-deprecating humor and undervaluing yourself. Do not call yourself ANY names! It is not funny to call yourself names. Ex. I am such a fat cow...I am so stupid...I am pathetic...etc. STOP!
Treat yourself with kindness ~ think of how you treat your friends. You would never do anything to intentionally hurt them ~ so now do that for yourself. Be your own best friend.
Learn to forgive yourself. Often we are too hard on ourselves. When you are down...pick yourself up. You would for a friend so start doing it for you.
Stop saying should and must. Removing these words from your thoughts will lead to more realistic expectations for yourself.
Think about the good things in your life. Give yourself praise for the good things you've done recently.
Still having the occasional negative thought? Don't fight negative thoughts with negative thoughts. They are bound to creep in...don't beat yourself up. Look for positive thoughts to counteract the negative. Ex. What can I do to not feel like this again?
Encourage yourself ~ just like needing to be our own best friend we need to be our own cheerleader! Give yourself credit for making positive changes in your life.

I am someone who has pretty good self esteem. I have accepted certain things about myself and own it. I am smart, creative and independent. However, even someone with "good" self esteem can have moments. When I feel down on myself, I try to find solutions to what is bothering me. I really try to think of what I would say to a friend if she was telling me all the things swirling around in my head. I would definitively try to make her feel better so I do it for myself.

Sometimes you need more than just you cheering you on. I am lucky that my mom is my cheerleader as well. No matter what my mom builds me up. She knows how to make me feel better. If you don't have a cheerleader, reach out to your mom or your friends because chances are they just don't know that you need them to be that cheerleader.

What I love about blogging is being able to help people with posts. I hate to think that people are hurting and think that if I blog something and they find it when they are in their moment of need than I have really helped. We all read and follow each others blogs and it's nice to know that we are connected because of blogging and always there for each other.

Here is my compliment to you...

I hope I have inspired you to love yourself and be you!

Because you are great!

*For more information on Self Image click (HERE)

Sleeping Beauty

2012-02-07T10:33:00.000-05:00

We all know that it is called beauty rest....

but do we really get enough of it?

Here are a few tips I read recently and have tried to implement for better sleep...

1) UNPLUG! ~ Apparently, electronics such as laptops, ipads and smartphones emit a blue hue that mimics daylight which stops your body from producing the sleep hormone melatonin. So for healthy z's unplug an hour before you go to sleep.

2) Less caffeine ~ sounds like a no brainer ... right? Did you know that caffeine can stay in your system for 12 hours...so when you have it at 3pm it interferes with sleep. Who knew it lasted that long?

3) Make your bed ~ a messy room and bed can make you feel stressed and restless.

4) Get up on weekends ~ Sleeping in on the weekends can throw off your sleep cycle and cause insomnia. If you want to sleep in ... aim for just one hour past your weekday wake up time.

5) Scents ~ the smell of lavender can improve your quality of sleep.

Sounds all fine and good right? Well what if we still can't sleep?

~ Try to stay awake ~ dim the lights and crawl into bed with a magazine or book and tell yourself to stay awake for 30 mins ~ chances are you'll be asleep within 10.

~ Get out of bed ~ tossing and turning for hours will only stress you out further. Get up and do some deep breathing exercises and do something (just no tv or laptop) once you feel tried go lay back down and you should fall asleep more easily.

~ Too many things swirling around in your mind ~ get up and make a to do list. Write down everything that you are thinking and go back to bed. It's amazing how much it clears up once you have it all on paper.

I have been really trying to make all these changes for better sleep and I think it is actually working. I rarely drink caffeine now, I don't lay in bed with my laptop, I bought a lavender plugin, I make our bed in the morning, I've been getting up early on the weekends and even been doing a little reading before turning out the lights.

How are you sleeping? Do you need to make some changes? Have you made some changes?

J'Adore

2012-02-06T10:16:00.001-05:00

Maybe I am officially old...but I thought Madonna

rocked the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

Come on ... that stage and graphics were INSANE!!

At one point, Paul asked why she was moving around so slow...

I said did you see those heels...I bet that stage is slippery!

I will admit when she came out with Vogue...I was my 7 year

old self again dancing around to her music.

I went to her 1989 Who's that Girl World Tour and even

my dad (who took me) said...Madonna knows how to put

on a show and all these years later she is still doing it!!

I'll admit..I got a lil teary at Like a Prayer...lol.

Instyle Look of the Day

Madonna

WHAT SHE WOREMadonna appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in a formfitting LBD and peep-toe stilettos.

WHY WE LOVE ITThe Material Girl showed off her ageless physique in a sexy ensemble that has us anticipating her Super Bowl halftime show!