An "ahhh crap" moment... far from an "Ahh ha" moment.

Recently I have been going through some health challenges. Nothing serious...really, more so annoying. So about a month ago I found out I had Shingles.  What are shingles some of you my be wondering... Its Chicken Pox on CRACK!! Apparently they follow nerve lines. Typically people get them on their back and sides or on their face/head. They have some commercials about the shingles virus... I totally watch those now... haha

Anyway I was fortunately enough to get them on my face. Luckily I kept those bad boys contained and the spread was very minimal. I didn't always want to wear  bag over my head at least. Anyway that cleared up fairly quickly and I was back on track with running and working on my fitness. You see I want to run a FULL 26.2 miles MARATHON!!! Woot Wooot. Just thinking about it makes me feel pretty bad A! Well a couple weeks after the shingles fiasco I started to feel really terrible. Like fatigue, grumpy, stiff and swollen joints, tired all the time, and I kinda wanted to punch everyone in the face! I can be grumpy/hangry but this was extreme and lasting too long so to the doc I went! Sure enough my Thyroid is way out of wack! Like normal is .3-4 and in February I was at an 8. That is high but manageable. Well last week it was a 44. That was the "ahhh crap" moment!

Ahhhh crap- thats why life sucks so much, ahh crap-there goes my training schedule, ahh crap- I can barely run a mile, ahh crap- I want ice cream. Yepp...

Alas there is an "ahh ha" moment. Sometimes life sucks and you drop your protein shake, or you get shingles in my case, but you re-adjust and make a new plan! Well the other night I decided I didn't feel like crap 100% so I went for a run. I felt so light and really felt like I was so dang graceful. Uhh yeah...

(Just imagine this picture in running form vs dancing... I may or may not have busted out a few dance moved during my run though.)

Anyway when the run was done I sat down to drink my post run chocolate milk- good for the bones and belly- am I right!?!?! My ankles instantly started to swell. I cant count how many time I woke up that night in pain and I usually sleep one hair shy from death! I think my full marathon goal needs to be adjusted just a wee bit. Girl cant run 26 miles if 1 mile make her feel like her feet are about to explode. There was another "ah crap" moment. But I am learning to adjust, re-plan, and move on.

What have you had to adjust, re-plan, and move on from recently?

You don't have to try so hard.

Last night while I was in the car with the family this song came on the radio. In true Jessica form I started to sing to it. Since day one this song sunk deep into my heart. I have listened to Colbie Caillat since her MySpace days....ohh yeah! I remember the first time I heard Coco on the radio. I totally squealed. This woman has an amazing voice and sooooo many beautiful messages in her songs. But I digress...

In that moment, in the car: full of boys: on the freeway, it hit pretty dang hard. Enough that I started to cry. Lovingly the hubby placed his hand on my hand and just held it there. I could not help but feel so blessed to be loved so unconditionally. You see I hardly were anything on my face aside from lotion. What you see on the daily is what I look like before I go to bed and when I wake up. For the life of me I cannot figure out how to wear makeup and look glamorous like all of the make-up tutorials I see posted to facebook or the "glamour shots" friends always seem to have like everyday!! Seriously how can these girls look so gorgeous all the time?!?!?

I make time for silly faces

Maybe I am the only one but I always wished I could look amazing like that...even just once but I can't, I am not them. I don't want to make the time to learn or apply makeup. Then I decided I was lazy and plain Jane was who I was going to be. It hasn't been up until the last couple years that I came up with another view of myself.

Now don't get me wrong makeup and girls who wear it is/are beautiful. If it makes you feel more confident then by all means but I see it as a means to cover up what you are naturally blessed with. I see it as a means to hide, whatever it may be that your hiding from. There is so much beauty in what is natural. I have heard girls say, "Well I just look _____ with out it. (sick, dead, pale, sunken, fat, ect,) Or that others think that of them. Just like how when others see me with make-up on-it is a shock because its so rare. The same can be said when others don't wear makeup, its  shock because its rare. Media has trained us to feel we need "something" to look and feel beautiful but what we fail to remember is that beauty comes in all shapes and forms and unfortunately what is deemed beautiful changes and so many of us are trying to catch that train when it leaves.

Don't conform to the expectations others decide, live up to your own. Trust and have confidence that your father and your mother created a beautiful being who is more that a face on Instagram or a good angled body shot on Facebook.


You don't have to try so hard...
The beauty is already there.

It's been a minute!

I cannot believe its be close to a year since I have posted- Man time sure does fly right!?!?!

To be honest not a whole lot has happened in the last year. What I can promise you is a lot will be happening in the next year! So lets chat and do a nutshell report shall we?

So Since having little #2 weight loss has been a beast!!! I mean hardly nothing worked and I have lost me some weight before!

What  have learned is what works in the past doesn't always work in the future. With that being said, especially as a woman, we pick ourselves back up and we keep moving! I have come to find that I have an amazing support system of other like minded women so love and support without strings attached. Heavenly Father knows I struggle alone so this really has been  blessing for me!

With that all being said I have legit news on the horizon. I pumping myself up over it and should have it all figured out int he next little bit

Until then- Make silly faces and know there really is beauty all around!

My Oreo hangover!

Ohh the misery!!!

These little guys are devils for SOOOOO reasons. But first let me relay a conversation we had:

Me: Are those MINT OREOS!?!?!?! 
 
Ladies at the table: yeah 

Me: Ohh man those things are my weakness 

Oreos: It’s girls night out and you just suffered leg day. But you can only have a few of us.

Me: DEAL! 

I had 6 of those bad boys. That doesn’t seem like a lot. For me in the past I could easily scarf down a whole row by myself in 1 episode of the Simpsons. Being the healthier person I am today this was a huge improvement but a binge still for me at this point.The conversation I had with my body the next day:

Body: WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!?!?!?! 

Me: Ohh crap the mint Oreos…ohh man. 

Body: Your choices are making me suffer so I am going to make you suffer.

Me: I’m SORRRRRRYYY!

My body has started to become accustomed to less sugar and fake stuff. Now by no means am I perfect and eat nothing but organic from the earth foods. I have my days/moments. What I can tell you is that my body knows the difference between real food and the fake stuff. As we grow up and make our choices based on convenience, laziness, ignorance, or whatever is it that helps you make your decisions our bodies become acclimated to what we feed it. Your body can get use to a row of Oreos in a quick minute- that does NOT mean it’s good for you. 

Look at those ingredients… they are not as bad as some things in this world but I can guarantee you that you will not be running or performing your best after eating them-that’s all fake un-sustainable energy right there folks.

If you don’t get anything out of this I want you to at least consider listening to your body. Cut back on something less than stellar for a little while and if you re-introduce it to your body and your fine than sweet. But if you have the conversation with your body like I did- take the hint.