My Locket & My Story

 Here is My Locket & My Story for T.Graham - Origami Owl Independent Designer

Blessed - I've overcome many obstacles in my life and have come out stronger for it in the end. I have been blessed with wonderful kids, a husband who always provides, amazing friends and loving family. I wake up every morning knowing I'm blessed to see another day. This part of my locket reminds me to always be thankful for what I have been blessed with.

The Coffee Cup - The coffee cup reminds me of good friends. It reminds me specifically of my "sisters" that I met in Junction City, KS. Those amazing women got me through one of the toughest years of my life, my husband's first deployment. They helped bring me closer to God and they helped me see the strength I never knew I had. This part of my locket reminds me of our coffee times together (even though all of them didn't drink coffee) and the wisdom they passed on to me.

Watch What You Eat!

If you're looking to lose weight, you HAVE to watch what you eat! I have read that "controlling your portion size is a key element in bringing your body to a state of controlled and manageable weight." I believe this to be true!! A few years ago when I lost just under 50lbs, watching what I ate played a major part in my weight loss.

I used a food journal and wrote down everything I ate/drank. I cut down my portion sizes to NORMAL servings and counted my calories. By counting calories and writing down exactly what I was eating and drinking, I could see where I needed improvement and how I could make the most of my calories. It didn't long to figure out I could eat more and feel more satisfied by cutting junk and replacing it with fruits and veggies.

Health/Fitness "Quiz"

Two important things need to happen for you to get healthy and fit. First, you need to have the right attitude. Second, you need make a commitment! After you've got that done, it's good to have a baseline to start at so you can physically see where you can start making better choices and start the journey to a healthier and more fit "you"!

In a book I'm reading, there is this Health/Fitness "Quiz". It helps you develop your Health/Fitness profile so you know where to go from there. When you're done answering the quiz and you get your "number", go back and see where you need improvement and set your goals from there!

HIIT - High Intensity Interval Training

I'm always googling things about weight loss and strength training and what are the best things to do. Not only did I keep seeing things about HIIT, but I have seen others actually talking about it. So for those who may not know, HIIT is High Intensity Interval Training.

What exactly does this mean?
HIIT is a type of training where you alternate short, high intensity exercises with recovery intervals. For example, sprinting for 60 seconds and walking for 2 minutes. Repeating for 30mins which includes a 5min warm-up walk and a 5min cool-down walk.

Fort Stewart Photographer - Shannon Goody

Shannon is a wife here at Fort Stewart and she is looking to take pictures of a 2013 high school senior. She has taken all kinds of photos: deployment, family pics, maternity... she has yet to do senior pictures and will take them for FREE to add to her portfolio.

All others in the area can check her out on Facebook at Shannon Goody Photography - her prices are reasonable and the pics are cute =)

ItWorks Wraps - Thought of Trying it?

If you've thought of trying ItWorks Wraps, you might want to check out Jessica Rhea's page on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/CaliWrapTastic

Jessica is a Veteran and the wife of a Soldier. She is a new distributor and has decided to do a raffle for a FREE wrap for those who sign up as a loyal customer. When you sign up as a loyal customer you get the discount prices on the website and accumulate reward points to go toward future purchases.

Being Green - Saw this Floating around FB

Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the older woman, that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.

The woman apologized and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in my earlier days."

The young clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations."

She was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.

Teddys From The Troops PR Update!

I'm so excited and pleased at how much my Product Review and Give-a-way helped "Teddy's From The Troops"! Here are some "stats" from "Teddy's From The Troops":

*Her Facebook Fan Page went up by close to 600 "likes"!!
*Two other bloggers asked her about doing the same as I did!!
*She had 5 sales within the first 2hrs of my posting!!
*More sales have been pouring in!!
*The big one - Army Spouse Magazine contacted her about doing a feature!!!

Suicide Prevention Week - September 9th - 15th, 2012

This week is Suicide Prevention Week.

I met someone a few years ago who had committed suicide. I won't share the story because I don't want to tell it without those involved knowing I am writing of it. I will say that it was a horrible tragedy and affected MANY people. I barely knew her and it affected me. She had a history of being depressed. Research has consistently shown a strong link between suicide and depression, with 90% of the people who die by suicide having an existing mental illness or substance abuse problem at the time of their death.

Teddy's From The Troops - (Product Review)

 Teddy's From The Troops

"Teddy's From The Troops" was started last November by an Army Veteran/Army Wife, Pamela Larson. During her husbands third deployment she took some of her old uniforms and made a few bears for her 2 young children to help comfort them during the deployment. Pamela says her children immediately loved them and that is what gave her the idea to start making them for others to give to their children who are dealing with a military separation.

Mrs. Larson did research on different styles of bears and tested the finished products on her kids and with some of her friends. Her finding was that her bears helped bring some comfort to children who were going through a military separation from one of their parents.