So since my last post a lot has happened!
The biggest news is that I have a surgery date! Groundhog day 2016 (February 2) I will have my procedure done.
It's been a long road and I can finally see that big changes are coming.
I have had to complete several steps in order to get this far and it has been in no way easy. I'm looking forward to what's to come. I can't help but start thinking about where I'll be in a year.
I've become a member of several support groups on social media and I'm honestly so excited seeing everyone's progress and how their lives have changed. I've also seen some that have had negative experiences and I'm learning from them as I hope others will learn from mine. It's surreal to think that in 3 weeks I will have had my surgery and hopefully be on a path to a better me.
My biggest wish is not just to get healthy weight wise, but to hopefully be in control of my PCOS. I just want to be normal. Whatever that is like.
<3 ~C
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Starting a new Journey
You know, life sometimes takes you on a journey you didn't exactly see as your plan in life. And a lot of times you just have to "roll with it". That's kind of what I'm doing these days.
So where have I been the last LONG forever? Living life.. busy- volunteering, working my Scentsy business, spending time with my husband & boys- traveling - so pretty much EVERYWHERE! <3
BUT life has me starting a new journey and I've been itching to "tell my story" so here I am back on my blog! (YAY?- I sure hope so!!)
For this journey we are going to have to go waaaaaaaaay back to when I was a young girl and I'll bring you up to what's going on today. So I grew up in Northeast Florida. I'm the oldest of 3 daughters (biologically- I have 3 step-brothers who came into the picture when I was older). I grew up in a pretty traditional home- had a mom & dad and a cat & dog (and sometimes a small farm lol). When I was in 4th grade I had my first boyfriend (if you can really call it? a school yard crush maybe?). When we came back to school after summer break I saw him on one of the sidewalks outside and he said something to the effects of "wow, did you sit on the couch and eat all summer" or something like that- looking at pictures of my 5th grade self I was not overweight by no stretch of the imagination- I don't even really look that much heavier when I see the photos. BUT from that point forward I was never the "skinny" one. I wasn't the "fat" one either- I was kinda somewhere in the middle- we used to call it "big boned" LOL. Fast forward a few years- when I was a senior in high school I decided I wanted to join the Army. I met a recruiter and started to talk about my options- he told me I was overweight- not a whole lot but enough that I had to lose about 5 or 10 lbs to join and leave for basic. I believe this was my first diet ever. But I did it- I lost the weight and joined the Army and left for Basic Training. My first duty station was Fort Polk, Louisiana. It was here that I met and married my husband. At that point in my army career I was borderline over weight but I always made "tape" meaning that they used a tape measure on certain parts of my body to say that I wasn't fat, just heavy. (I think it's a way of figuring out your BMI) any who- I was like that the entire first 2 years of my Army career. In February of 1997 I went off of birth control to start trying to get pregnant- and thus it began- I began packing weight on no matter what I did- I got heavier and heavier until I was ultimately discharged from the military on failure to meet the height & weight requirements (not sure how you fail height after you're in.. but whatever). We continued to try to get pregnant and sometime about 2 years after beginning trying I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). This was probably 1998 maybe? Any who- we began fertility treatments (some of which one of the side effects were weight gain) And gain I did- unfortunately not due to a pregnancy. In between attempting to getting pregnant there was some minimal treatment of the PCOS but not much since it was not very well known. In 2003 we started the adoption process and adopted 2 sons in 2004. At this point I was over weight but not gross- heavier than I wanted but still active to be with my boys and enjoy living in Hawaii. By the time we moved to Tennessee in 2005 I was 28 and still getting heavier. My husband left for his first deployment and I said enough is enough- so I joined a gym, had 4 gym partners and started every little diet out there- the one where you only eat cereal for 2 meals a day, or eat only yogurt for 2 meals a day, I tried a juice diet, and my first low-carb diet. Each thing I did I started out strong- losing 2-3 lbs the first week- and then after 3 weeks the weight loss stopped- so I would move on to the next one- where we lived there was a "diet dr." who prescribed diet medications (I can't help but think that this is kinda sketchy) in an office in a strip mall.. by the time my husband came back I had lost a considerable amount of weight (I might add I did start smoking again also) BUT I got into a car accident and had an injury to my neck & shoulder that prevented me going to the gym for a long while- and quicker than it went off the weight came back- and just to be safe it brought some friends with it :( . Thus began the cycle- I tried tons of other diet plans, all the while gaining even more weight- It didn't matter what i ate, what exercise I did- the gaining wouldn't stop. The doctors kept checking my thyroid which kept coming back normal. We moved again and I started a program with meetings and food journaling and lost 10 lbs. I even had a breast reduction so that I would be able to lose more weight when I was working out.. Then when we moved the next time- those 10 came back with 50 of their friends. No matter what I did, what I tried nothing was working- I even joined one of those super-trendy new type of gyms and worked out til I thought I had died and I only lost about 7 lbs (I was strong as hell- BUT wasn't loosing weight like my gym-mates who joined with me) I was so discouraged- I have several friends who are parts of home based diet companies- I tried their products- some I actually gained on. I saw an endocrinologist for my PCOS and was put on medicines that should help my PCOS and possibly my weight- well that didn't work either. I got so frustrated that I went to my Dr. and begged for a consult for bariatric surgery- and she flat out told me no. That it wasn't a life I wanted to lead- that I wouldn't be able to eat normal foods, never have a glass of wine again, I would always regret it and on and on while I sat there sobbing asking what my options were- she referred me to the nutrition program offered where I live and told me that they prescribe a medication that won't allow you to absorb fat- and basically you have a hard time holding your bowels (EW) I was like I'd rather be fat than need to wear an adult diaper.. (well maybe wouldn't- but neither is an option that I felt was acceptable). I tried a meal-replacement plan not long after that and for 3 weeks literally cried- I went back to see a new doctor and she did some research on the foods I was eating and said that they contained too much soy- and that soy was an estrogen mimicker which is what was causing the crying episodes- she offered a nutrition consult again, and offered an appointment with someone to talk to. Then she offered a consult for bariatric surgery. At first I was scared, then I was nervous, I was excited and dumbfounded. I have several friends who had surgery after my first doctor told me I didn't want to live my life that way- they are all living their lives, some I didn't even know had surgery because in social settings they are just the same as all the other people in our social circles. So I started to do some research- and I met with the surgeon. I talked to a lot of people about having surgery- I listened to their concerns- I weighed (no pun intended) the pros and the cons- and this is what I came up with:
PROs:
losing weight
being able to be more active
being more satisfied with my appearance
more self confidence
less self-loathing
improved health
possible resolution of histuitism (male pattern hair growth- thanks to PCOS)
possible restoration of menstrual function (I'm not hoping to get pregnant- that is not a goal at this point in our lives)
for the first time knowing that I am in control not PCOS
the chance to LIVE my life with no regrets- not holding back because I don't want people to see me (I've been to Cancun & never swam in the ocean because I didn't want people to see me)
CONs:
having to take vitamins every day
the inability to gorge myself (wait- is this really a con?).. probably not
have to buy new clothes (again this shouldn't be a con)
possible hair loss (this usually clears up if you take vitamins & eat the necessary protein by the 18th month)
inability to eat "Dry" meats (well dry meat isn't usually that good anyway
inability to eat sugary foods (this I think will be a good thing also)
having to have surgery (this I'm not looking forward to)
I'm sure there are more Pros/Cons that people would suggest to me- but honestly I promise that I've done my due diligence in looking into surgery- and at this point in my life I'm not sure that I have any other options. I feel like I'm at a ledge- and my choice is to jump off one side or the other- either make peace with being fat for the rest of my life- or jump the other way toward the chance to have a new life- I'm not saying it's going to be easy- God knows that I understand that. I used to think it was the easy way out- and boy did I pass judgement on people about having surgery- and for that I'm sorry- because what I didn't realize then is that one day I'd be in the exact same spot.. yearning to live my life and stop being weighed (again no pun intended) down by being fat.
So here's where I'm at in my process- My insurance approved my consult with a bariatric surgeon and I've met with him and discussed the options available to me- unfortunately my insurance doesn't cover the newest procedure- gastric sleeve, but they cover gastric bypass (RNY) or the Lap Band. When looking at the statistics of the 2 compared to each other I have decided on the RNY surgery.
I'm now in the pre-op phase- I have several things to do before having surgery- consults, tests, blood work, evaluations, studies etc. I've got a list of things to do before I can have surgery. I want to try to blog though this journey since when I was looking for info on what to expect it was very hard to find good "timeline" info. I'll keep you updated on my progress! ~ <3 Hugs~ C
So where have I been the last LONG forever? Living life.. busy- volunteering, working my Scentsy business, spending time with my husband & boys- traveling - so pretty much EVERYWHERE! <3
BUT life has me starting a new journey and I've been itching to "tell my story" so here I am back on my blog! (YAY?- I sure hope so!!)
For this journey we are going to have to go waaaaaaaaay back to when I was a young girl and I'll bring you up to what's going on today. So I grew up in Northeast Florida. I'm the oldest of 3 daughters (biologically- I have 3 step-brothers who came into the picture when I was older). I grew up in a pretty traditional home- had a mom & dad and a cat & dog (and sometimes a small farm lol). When I was in 4th grade I had my first boyfriend (if you can really call it? a school yard crush maybe?). When we came back to school after summer break I saw him on one of the sidewalks outside and he said something to the effects of "wow, did you sit on the couch and eat all summer" or something like that- looking at pictures of my 5th grade self I was not overweight by no stretch of the imagination- I don't even really look that much heavier when I see the photos. BUT from that point forward I was never the "skinny" one. I wasn't the "fat" one either- I was kinda somewhere in the middle- we used to call it "big boned" LOL. Fast forward a few years- when I was a senior in high school I decided I wanted to join the Army. I met a recruiter and started to talk about my options- he told me I was overweight- not a whole lot but enough that I had to lose about 5 or 10 lbs to join and leave for basic. I believe this was my first diet ever. But I did it- I lost the weight and joined the Army and left for Basic Training. My first duty station was Fort Polk, Louisiana. It was here that I met and married my husband. At that point in my army career I was borderline over weight but I always made "tape" meaning that they used a tape measure on certain parts of my body to say that I wasn't fat, just heavy. (I think it's a way of figuring out your BMI) any who- I was like that the entire first 2 years of my Army career. In February of 1997 I went off of birth control to start trying to get pregnant- and thus it began- I began packing weight on no matter what I did- I got heavier and heavier until I was ultimately discharged from the military on failure to meet the height & weight requirements (not sure how you fail height after you're in.. but whatever). We continued to try to get pregnant and sometime about 2 years after beginning trying I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). This was probably 1998 maybe? Any who- we began fertility treatments (some of which one of the side effects were weight gain) And gain I did- unfortunately not due to a pregnancy. In between attempting to getting pregnant there was some minimal treatment of the PCOS but not much since it was not very well known. In 2003 we started the adoption process and adopted 2 sons in 2004. At this point I was over weight but not gross- heavier than I wanted but still active to be with my boys and enjoy living in Hawaii. By the time we moved to Tennessee in 2005 I was 28 and still getting heavier. My husband left for his first deployment and I said enough is enough- so I joined a gym, had 4 gym partners and started every little diet out there- the one where you only eat cereal for 2 meals a day, or eat only yogurt for 2 meals a day, I tried a juice diet, and my first low-carb diet. Each thing I did I started out strong- losing 2-3 lbs the first week- and then after 3 weeks the weight loss stopped- so I would move on to the next one- where we lived there was a "diet dr." who prescribed diet medications (I can't help but think that this is kinda sketchy) in an office in a strip mall.. by the time my husband came back I had lost a considerable amount of weight (I might add I did start smoking again also) BUT I got into a car accident and had an injury to my neck & shoulder that prevented me going to the gym for a long while- and quicker than it went off the weight came back- and just to be safe it brought some friends with it :( . Thus began the cycle- I tried tons of other diet plans, all the while gaining even more weight- It didn't matter what i ate, what exercise I did- the gaining wouldn't stop. The doctors kept checking my thyroid which kept coming back normal. We moved again and I started a program with meetings and food journaling and lost 10 lbs. I even had a breast reduction so that I would be able to lose more weight when I was working out.. Then when we moved the next time- those 10 came back with 50 of their friends. No matter what I did, what I tried nothing was working- I even joined one of those super-trendy new type of gyms and worked out til I thought I had died and I only lost about 7 lbs (I was strong as hell- BUT wasn't loosing weight like my gym-mates who joined with me) I was so discouraged- I have several friends who are parts of home based diet companies- I tried their products- some I actually gained on. I saw an endocrinologist for my PCOS and was put on medicines that should help my PCOS and possibly my weight- well that didn't work either. I got so frustrated that I went to my Dr. and begged for a consult for bariatric surgery- and she flat out told me no. That it wasn't a life I wanted to lead- that I wouldn't be able to eat normal foods, never have a glass of wine again, I would always regret it and on and on while I sat there sobbing asking what my options were- she referred me to the nutrition program offered where I live and told me that they prescribe a medication that won't allow you to absorb fat- and basically you have a hard time holding your bowels (EW) I was like I'd rather be fat than need to wear an adult diaper.. (well maybe wouldn't- but neither is an option that I felt was acceptable). I tried a meal-replacement plan not long after that and for 3 weeks literally cried- I went back to see a new doctor and she did some research on the foods I was eating and said that they contained too much soy- and that soy was an estrogen mimicker which is what was causing the crying episodes- she offered a nutrition consult again, and offered an appointment with someone to talk to. Then she offered a consult for bariatric surgery. At first I was scared, then I was nervous, I was excited and dumbfounded. I have several friends who had surgery after my first doctor told me I didn't want to live my life that way- they are all living their lives, some I didn't even know had surgery because in social settings they are just the same as all the other people in our social circles. So I started to do some research- and I met with the surgeon. I talked to a lot of people about having surgery- I listened to their concerns- I weighed (no pun intended) the pros and the cons- and this is what I came up with:
PROs:
losing weight
being able to be more active
being more satisfied with my appearance
more self confidence
less self-loathing
improved health
possible resolution of histuitism (male pattern hair growth- thanks to PCOS)
possible restoration of menstrual function (I'm not hoping to get pregnant- that is not a goal at this point in our lives)
for the first time knowing that I am in control not PCOS
the chance to LIVE my life with no regrets- not holding back because I don't want people to see me (I've been to Cancun & never swam in the ocean because I didn't want people to see me)
CONs:
having to take vitamins every day
the inability to gorge myself (wait- is this really a con?).. probably not
have to buy new clothes (again this shouldn't be a con)
possible hair loss (this usually clears up if you take vitamins & eat the necessary protein by the 18th month)
inability to eat "Dry" meats (well dry meat isn't usually that good anyway
inability to eat sugary foods (this I think will be a good thing also)
having to have surgery (this I'm not looking forward to)
I'm sure there are more Pros/Cons that people would suggest to me- but honestly I promise that I've done my due diligence in looking into surgery- and at this point in my life I'm not sure that I have any other options. I feel like I'm at a ledge- and my choice is to jump off one side or the other- either make peace with being fat for the rest of my life- or jump the other way toward the chance to have a new life- I'm not saying it's going to be easy- God knows that I understand that. I used to think it was the easy way out- and boy did I pass judgement on people about having surgery- and for that I'm sorry- because what I didn't realize then is that one day I'd be in the exact same spot.. yearning to live my life and stop being weighed (again no pun intended) down by being fat.
So here's where I'm at in my process- My insurance approved my consult with a bariatric surgeon and I've met with him and discussed the options available to me- unfortunately my insurance doesn't cover the newest procedure- gastric sleeve, but they cover gastric bypass (RNY) or the Lap Band. When looking at the statistics of the 2 compared to each other I have decided on the RNY surgery.
I'm now in the pre-op phase- I have several things to do before having surgery- consults, tests, blood work, evaluations, studies etc. I've got a list of things to do before I can have surgery. I want to try to blog though this journey since when I was looking for info on what to expect it was very hard to find good "timeline" info. I'll keep you updated on my progress! ~ <3 Hugs~ C
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
The Gift of Motherhood
Okay this is something that has been heavy on my heart lately. I have been suppressing the urge to post about it on my Facebook page for a bit. I've seen some very sad posts lately in my newsfeed about pregnancy, birth, adoptions and the such and I just want to share that there are always 2 sides to every story.
Many of you know that my boys are adopted. We tried for 7 years to get pregnant without a single ovulation- not a single chance that we would ever carry our genetically-linked child into this world. Did this make me sad? YES- sad is an understatement- I was devastated. It is the one most natural thing your body, as a woman, is meant to do, and when it doesn't do it, it's hard to understand and accept why. Until April 4, 2003 when I met my children for the first time. I knew in that first moment that THEY were who we had been waiting for all those years. <3
Now to some adoption my be an "easy way out" for a mom with an unplanned pregnancy, or they may see it as the birthmother "giving up" a child, but here's how I view adoption: The birthmother (or birthparents) are essentially giving the child that they are carrying the life that they know they wouldn't be able to provide for them. They are giving that child the opportunity to have 2 loving parents, siblings, love (more love than they may know what to do with), the opportunity to grow and flourish without struggle. Is this the case for all adoptions? I'm sure it's not- but in some cases the birthparents aren't ready to be parents and they couldn't bring themselves to have an abortion, so they carry the baby to term- they aren't ready to give up their life for the life of the child so they place them for adoption. This is an extremely hard choice for the birthmother/parents to make. But in making this decision they are helping a family who otherwise wouldn't have gotten the chance to become a family. I promise you that adoptive parents pray just as hard for these babies as those who pray for them to be kept. Sometimes adoptive parents wait years to be matched with a birth family, after being scrutinized by an adoption agency as to their fitness to be a family (while anyone who can get pregnant can have & keep a baby without a second thought). Sometimes there's a match made and the adoptive family prepares to welcome this baby into their home, fall in love with the unborn child only to have their dreams shattered when a birth mother decides at birth to keep the baby. Sometimes adoptive families bring the baby home only to be sued later by the birth family to take the child back. Failed adoptions happen- and are devastating to the family. Sometimes the children who are kept by the birth family end up in the state systems for various reasons, which can in turn have horrible effects on the child that may last in to adulthood.
While not everyone has the views of adoption that I do (I suppose you'd have to go through this to understand it?) A little bit of compassion should be given when you negatively speak of adoption. Without Adoption I would have never had the chance to be a mother. Without adoption my children would be wards of the state living in foster care. Without Adoption my husband would never have had the life he had. Without adoption many of my friends wouldn't have had children. Without adoption I wouldn't have a niece. Without adoption I may not have a nephew some day. Adoption may not be right for everyone or even "normal" but in our family it is more normal than pregnancy~ remember that the next time you want to think it's an awful thing. This is my Truth, and my life. <3
Many of you know that my boys are adopted. We tried for 7 years to get pregnant without a single ovulation- not a single chance that we would ever carry our genetically-linked child into this world. Did this make me sad? YES- sad is an understatement- I was devastated. It is the one most natural thing your body, as a woman, is meant to do, and when it doesn't do it, it's hard to understand and accept why. Until April 4, 2003 when I met my children for the first time. I knew in that first moment that THEY were who we had been waiting for all those years. <3
Now to some adoption my be an "easy way out" for a mom with an unplanned pregnancy, or they may see it as the birthmother "giving up" a child, but here's how I view adoption: The birthmother (or birthparents) are essentially giving the child that they are carrying the life that they know they wouldn't be able to provide for them. They are giving that child the opportunity to have 2 loving parents, siblings, love (more love than they may know what to do with), the opportunity to grow and flourish without struggle. Is this the case for all adoptions? I'm sure it's not- but in some cases the birthparents aren't ready to be parents and they couldn't bring themselves to have an abortion, so they carry the baby to term- they aren't ready to give up their life for the life of the child so they place them for adoption. This is an extremely hard choice for the birthmother/parents to make. But in making this decision they are helping a family who otherwise wouldn't have gotten the chance to become a family. I promise you that adoptive parents pray just as hard for these babies as those who pray for them to be kept. Sometimes adoptive parents wait years to be matched with a birth family, after being scrutinized by an adoption agency as to their fitness to be a family (while anyone who can get pregnant can have & keep a baby without a second thought). Sometimes there's a match made and the adoptive family prepares to welcome this baby into their home, fall in love with the unborn child only to have their dreams shattered when a birth mother decides at birth to keep the baby. Sometimes adoptive families bring the baby home only to be sued later by the birth family to take the child back. Failed adoptions happen- and are devastating to the family. Sometimes the children who are kept by the birth family end up in the state systems for various reasons, which can in turn have horrible effects on the child that may last in to adulthood.
While not everyone has the views of adoption that I do (I suppose you'd have to go through this to understand it?) A little bit of compassion should be given when you negatively speak of adoption. Without Adoption I would have never had the chance to be a mother. Without adoption my children would be wards of the state living in foster care. Without Adoption my husband would never have had the life he had. Without adoption many of my friends wouldn't have had children. Without adoption I wouldn't have a niece. Without adoption I may not have a nephew some day. Adoption may not be right for everyone or even "normal" but in our family it is more normal than pregnancy~ remember that the next time you want to think it's an awful thing. This is my Truth, and my life. <3
Friday, February 14, 2014
Conquering Fears?
So I know I wrote about some fears I have not too long ago BUT on Wednesday I reached my first step in conquering one of them! Remember that box that I told you I was afraid of in the gym?? Well I was able on Wednesday to get what I will call an "almost" successful jump- I got up but my feet didn't get all the way up so as soon as I was up I was right back down.. 
Today we were setting up our final workout of boot camp and one of the things on the board was to do burpee-boxjumps which is where you do a burpee (if you don't know what that is- google it..lol) then jump up on the box. One of the girls in my class was placing boxes for everyone (she's a sweetie!!) and I turned around and just jumped up- right up there like I was supposed to be up there.. then I tried again and I fell- backwards where I couldn't catch myself from falling (felt to me like slow motion) and didn't stop falling til I got to the wall- one of the coaches had this panicked look on his face and I just kept saying I'm good I'm good! LOL BUT then we started the workout and I started jumping up there like I'd always been doing it! I was still a little shaky and not getting good foot placement but my coach told me I was too far away and once I got closer I was up there hitting the middle of the box each time- I'm sure they weren't the prettiest box jumps ever, BUT I do know that I most likely looked like this girl- minus the shin slam- (PS why is she wearing flip flops to jump??)
http://youtu.be/Tm475nhXFn4
So that's one fear conquered.. now to make them prettier and where I can do more at one time- I did about 10 today :D
http://youtu.be/Tm475nhXFn4
So that's one fear conquered.. now to make them prettier and where I can do more at one time- I did about 10 today :D
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Who made Mother Nature so mad??
I'm not quite sure who pissed off Mother Nature, but frankly they need to apologize!
First let me explain a few things- I do not mind cold when I live somewhere that is cold. I am NOT by any means a hot-weather loving gal. I prefer the cold. That being said I think it is fine time that it warm up a bit. I say this for 2 reasons:
1. NO MORE SNEAUX DAYS!! (Yes that's how they spell S-N-O-W in Louisiana.. don't ask) Our kids have already missed I think 6 days? This friday was supposed to be a holiday but now is a school day.
2. NO MORE SNEAUX DAYS!!! LOL when we have sneaux days the box is closed (the box is the gym) and I hate missing workouts :( I have very little self-motivation to do a workout at home!
It's not just Louisiana that is taking a hit. But since I live here that's what I will tell you about lol. Tonight during dinner it started with some thunder then heavy rain and now they are expecting some ice to start soon!!
Here's what our radar looks like now:
And here is what we are expecting in just a little while:
I'm not sure I ever mentioned this before but we've lived at this same post twice. When we were here the first time waaaaaay back in 1997 we had a terrible ice storm- I'm hoping that this one is not anything like that one!! Back then we lost power, trees there was ice on everything and every where!
The bad thing about the winter weather here is that Louisiana is not equipped to handle this weather in long bursts- usually they get a cold snap for a couple of days and then it warms back up but this year it seems like mother nature is putting us into a deep-freeze. It really makes me miss living up north- at least there you expect it and when you hit 40 degrees it feels so warm!!
How's the weather where you live?? <3
First let me explain a few things- I do not mind cold when I live somewhere that is cold. I am NOT by any means a hot-weather loving gal. I prefer the cold. That being said I think it is fine time that it warm up a bit. I say this for 2 reasons:
1. NO MORE SNEAUX DAYS!! (Yes that's how they spell S-N-O-W in Louisiana.. don't ask) Our kids have already missed I think 6 days? This friday was supposed to be a holiday but now is a school day.
2. NO MORE SNEAUX DAYS!!! LOL when we have sneaux days the box is closed (the box is the gym) and I hate missing workouts :( I have very little self-motivation to do a workout at home!
It's not just Louisiana that is taking a hit. But since I live here that's what I will tell you about lol. Tonight during dinner it started with some thunder then heavy rain and now they are expecting some ice to start soon!!
Here's what our radar looks like now:
The bad thing about the winter weather here is that Louisiana is not equipped to handle this weather in long bursts- usually they get a cold snap for a couple of days and then it warms back up but this year it seems like mother nature is putting us into a deep-freeze. It really makes me miss living up north- at least there you expect it and when you hit 40 degrees it feels so warm!!
How's the weather where you live?? <3
Monday, February 10, 2014
Goin' on a trip!!
So Remember when I said I had a trip coming up that I was going to get to see my team of girls from my business?? Well that trip was this last weekend. I packed a suitcase and went to the airport and flew all the way up to Cleveland, Ohio! The local airport here is tiny (only has 4 gates) and is a very peaceful airport- you come in check in, drop your bag go upstairs have a cup of coffee or snack at the little restaurant/bar go thru security and relax a bit til it's time to go. It's come a long way since the mid 1990's when I flew into this same airport to report to post as my first duty station. Back then it was just a white concrete building with a help desk, a taxi stand and I believe a 1-toilet restroom. I was from a small town- but this shocked me! Now it's a beautiful plantation-esque (or maybe it's grecian lol) building made of brick with some columns. Very nice improvements!!
Anywho- I flew from this quiet airport to Atlanta (Home of CHAOS) and had to deal with zillions of people (I stand completely by that number) who were rushing from one plane to the other, I on the other hand had a 2 hour layover to figure out what to do in... I found my new gate (after having to change terminals-anyone whose been to Atlanta knows what a pain this is) got myself a snack and waited for my next flight. As I flew further north I began to notice snow on the ground. I've never flown somewhere that had snow!! I've lived there but never flown in/out when there was snow on the ground- I wondered how this would impact landing!! (YAY something else to be anxious about) 
But I made it into Cleveland and waited for my team to pick me up/luggage to come out of the baggage claim and got to spend time with my gals on Friday night. We went to dinner together and then back to our hotel to get ready for our mini-convention the next morning! We had a GREAT time Learned some AMAZING things and best of all got to spend lots of time together!!
When we woke up on Sunday morning it was snowing in Cleveland.. not hard, but a good steady snow! When we got downstairs to get ready to go to the airport the sidewalk in front of our hotel was a slushy mess- we loaded the car up and headed to the airport. I've decided that the state of Ohio doesn't have a single snow plow.. or if they do they are invisible- because in the entire trip to the airport I didn't see a single one.. In New York you see one every 5 minutes when it's snowing! Anyhow- made it to the airport and got checked in and went to my gate- where to my HORROR I saw this:
I knew there was a runway out there.. somewhere.. right? (OH and I think I found all of Ohio's plows.. they were at the airport).. GAH. If you have anxiety about anything this is sure to help trigger it. So I had some time to kill so I went and had some grilled chicken and a glass of wine at one of the restaurants in the airport- the wine helped.. a LOT! When our plane came in it was snowing a little less but was still snowing- but you could kind of see the runway out there- see?
.. well okay maybe not.. BUT at least I knew there was a runway somewhere that this plane had come in on! They let all the passengers off, cleaned and reset the plane and we boarded. We were at the gate for FOREVER past our take off time when the pilot announced we had to be de-iced.. GAH.. it was as bad as I thought it was!! I've never been de-iced before- wasn't even sure how they do that- but we taxied up to a "holding area" that was the de-icing lane- kind of like a car wash line. There were 2 planes that I could see out my window and I'm sure a couple more on the other side. This truck drove over with a weird cab on top of it and these weird spraying nozzles- and the guy up in the cab was driving the truck from up there (swear it's true- freaky but true)
And then they started spraying the plane with this orange-thick fluid! The whole plane was covered in it- I watched as this ooze flowed over my window in horror- but hoping and praying that this stuff is going to keep our plane from freezing up!!
And guess what?? It worked- we got up in the air and I made it from Cleveland, back to Atlanta with only a minor delay- BUT now my 1 hour 1 minute layover was just a 40 minute layover and I had to change terminals AGAIN.. so I hit the ground RUNNING in Atlanta- true story- okay well I ran down the escalator to the train doors and then back from the train to the gate to be safe- and I made it with just enough time to go potty and get a drink! YAY!
We got boarded and I was next to a man eating french fries.. seriously dude? Anyway- outside my window I watched the world of Atlanta get smaller and I took some time to read a book- I looked up at just the right time to realize we were crossing the Mighty Mississippi River! So amazing!
and then I noticed that there was this weird pattern on my window- kind of like a star or an angel.. was pretty neat to see it- check it out:
When we landed I was so appreciative of the quiet, peaceful airport here- It was so easy- no one was fighting to get to their connecting gates, no one was rushing for anywhere but a bathroom. I got into my car and I drove myself HOME.. it's good to be HOME.. I love to travel but I always LOVE coming HOME..
Do you ever have crazy travel stories? <3
When we woke up on Sunday morning it was snowing in Cleveland.. not hard, but a good steady snow! When we got downstairs to get ready to go to the airport the sidewalk in front of our hotel was a slushy mess- we loaded the car up and headed to the airport. I've decided that the state of Ohio doesn't have a single snow plow.. or if they do they are invisible- because in the entire trip to the airport I didn't see a single one.. In New York you see one every 5 minutes when it's snowing! Anyhow- made it to the airport and got checked in and went to my gate- where to my HORROR I saw this:
We got boarded and I was next to a man eating french fries.. seriously dude? Anyway- outside my window I watched the world of Atlanta get smaller and I took some time to read a book- I looked up at just the right time to realize we were crossing the Mighty Mississippi River! So amazing!
Do you ever have crazy travel stories? <3
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Customer Service
Okay so it's not a secret that I run a business. In my business I strive to provide my customers with good (if not excellent) customer service. I go out of my way most of the time to ensure they are happy.
BUT lately I have had a string of bad customer service situations with other businesses. When you provide me with less than good service, I tend not to recommend you to my friends, customers and general public. When you provide me with horrible service I tend to make sure everyone knows how bad it was. Not to try to hurt your business, but rather to help my friends from having the same experience.
I always try to give the benefit of the doubt- is there a possible reason why your service is terrible? If its justifiable or understandable then I don't get upset, but when there is NO GOOD REASON, then I of course get upset. If you lie to me, that's even worse. It's better to tell the truth in all situations. Case in point: Not long after moving to Louisiana I took my car to the dealership to get an oil change. I got there and they said it would be about 45 minutes- no problem, settled into the waiting area with my son and we waited. About 20 minutes go by and the service advisor comes in, my first thought was "Wow, that's awesome!!" thinking they were done- but he came in to tell me that when they went to torque my oil plug open that the threads came out of the oil pan.. say what? He had a quote for a new oil pan in hand and told me I couldn't leave with my car.. say what again? He told me to call a rental agency and get a rental and that my car would be ready in 2-3 days if I could just sign this page- the estimate for the new oil pan.. one that they just broke? Hold up- you just broke my car and want me to pay to fix it? I think at that moment I lost my ever loving mind. See I have religiously maintained my 10 year old car at the dealer only. I have always had a great relationship with the service department in each of the places I've lived since buying this car. And I've NEVER heard of oil plug threads coming out of the oil pan.. So I told him to hold up- I want my car on the lift and I want you to show me what is wrong with it- he looked at me in shock and disbelief.. see, my dad is a mechanic, our first dealership where we bought the car used to put it on the lift and show you the underside if there was a problem, come to think of it, they all have.. He told me that safety rules prohibit that.. I said you better go ask someone else- and I walked outside and called my dealer in New York- they said that the stripped oil pans are a result of not using a standard wrench to remove the plug but rather using a torque wrench- which at this point the new dealership was saying they didn't use.. (LIE). So the service advisor went and got the service manager- and at this point I was quite loud and crying (crying because I was angry) and I told him to put my car on the lift and show me what was wrong with it. I also told him that I've never been told I had to get a rental car when getting my car fixed at any other dealership and that I've always been given a loaner. He told me that they charge people for their loaners.. SERIOUSLY?? I told him that was NOT acceptable. I drove an hour to get to this dealership (closest to me) so that I could get my car into a dealership service not just a walmart oil change. At this point I was ready to just get my car towed home I was that upset. Finally he came in and told me that he'd "Give" me a loaner car but that I'd have to pay to get the oil pan fixed. I said fine- Fix it- 3 days later when they called to say it was ready when i got there the FIRST thing I did was lay on my back and crawl under my car to ensure that the oil pan on my car was indeed new. As I paid, the lady in the cash cage asked to schedule my next appointment and I said, "I'm sorry I won't be back. The customer service here is lacking in so many ways in the service department" She apologized but didn't look surprised. What would they have had to do to make me believe they cared bout customer service? Possibly owned up to the fact that they broke the oil pan and they replaced it free of charge? Maybe just be nicer about the whole situation instead of acting like I broke my car. Who knows. All I know is that I'm due for another oil change here soon and I am looking for a new dealership to go to!
Have you ever had horrible Customer Service?? What happened?? How'd it resolve??
<3
BUT lately I have had a string of bad customer service situations with other businesses. When you provide me with less than good service, I tend not to recommend you to my friends, customers and general public. When you provide me with horrible service I tend to make sure everyone knows how bad it was. Not to try to hurt your business, but rather to help my friends from having the same experience.
I always try to give the benefit of the doubt- is there a possible reason why your service is terrible? If its justifiable or understandable then I don't get upset, but when there is NO GOOD REASON, then I of course get upset. If you lie to me, that's even worse. It's better to tell the truth in all situations. Case in point: Not long after moving to Louisiana I took my car to the dealership to get an oil change. I got there and they said it would be about 45 minutes- no problem, settled into the waiting area with my son and we waited. About 20 minutes go by and the service advisor comes in, my first thought was "Wow, that's awesome!!" thinking they were done- but he came in to tell me that when they went to torque my oil plug open that the threads came out of the oil pan.. say what? He had a quote for a new oil pan in hand and told me I couldn't leave with my car.. say what again? He told me to call a rental agency and get a rental and that my car would be ready in 2-3 days if I could just sign this page- the estimate for the new oil pan.. one that they just broke? Hold up- you just broke my car and want me to pay to fix it? I think at that moment I lost my ever loving mind. See I have religiously maintained my 10 year old car at the dealer only. I have always had a great relationship with the service department in each of the places I've lived since buying this car. And I've NEVER heard of oil plug threads coming out of the oil pan.. So I told him to hold up- I want my car on the lift and I want you to show me what is wrong with it- he looked at me in shock and disbelief.. see, my dad is a mechanic, our first dealership where we bought the car used to put it on the lift and show you the underside if there was a problem, come to think of it, they all have.. He told me that safety rules prohibit that.. I said you better go ask someone else- and I walked outside and called my dealer in New York- they said that the stripped oil pans are a result of not using a standard wrench to remove the plug but rather using a torque wrench- which at this point the new dealership was saying they didn't use.. (LIE). So the service advisor went and got the service manager- and at this point I was quite loud and crying (crying because I was angry) and I told him to put my car on the lift and show me what was wrong with it. I also told him that I've never been told I had to get a rental car when getting my car fixed at any other dealership and that I've always been given a loaner. He told me that they charge people for their loaners.. SERIOUSLY?? I told him that was NOT acceptable. I drove an hour to get to this dealership (closest to me) so that I could get my car into a dealership service not just a walmart oil change. At this point I was ready to just get my car towed home I was that upset. Finally he came in and told me that he'd "Give" me a loaner car but that I'd have to pay to get the oil pan fixed. I said fine- Fix it- 3 days later when they called to say it was ready when i got there the FIRST thing I did was lay on my back and crawl under my car to ensure that the oil pan on my car was indeed new. As I paid, the lady in the cash cage asked to schedule my next appointment and I said, "I'm sorry I won't be back. The customer service here is lacking in so many ways in the service department" She apologized but didn't look surprised. What would they have had to do to make me believe they cared bout customer service? Possibly owned up to the fact that they broke the oil pan and they replaced it free of charge? Maybe just be nicer about the whole situation instead of acting like I broke my car. Who knows. All I know is that I'm due for another oil change here soon and I am looking for a new dealership to go to!
Have you ever had horrible Customer Service?? What happened?? How'd it resolve??
<3
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