Still on the weight loss track.

So, I have been on Medifast for a week and a half.  I do not find myself to be hungry and the food is ok tasting.  I have only lost 6.5 lbs since starting.  I had expected to lose a little more but have cheated here and there.  Not big cheating - no fast food, candy, or crap.  I think my biggest problem is drinking the water.  I hate water!  I bought this stuff called MIO(the berry/pomegranate flavor).  It has made it easier to drink the water.  So my new goal is to try to drink 64 oz of water a day.  I think I will be living in the bathroom.  The other problem is the one meal I have to prepare for myself.  I have not found my scale yet so weighing the food has not been happening.  I just go by eyeing out the portion.  I do feel smaller and my clothes seem a bit bigger.  I will keep trudging along.  I am determined to lose this weight once and for all!  This weekend I start adding exercise to my plan.

Weight Loss - Ain't it a B@&ch!

    I have been plagued by my weight for probably about 20 years.  I have tried every diet known to man and have mostly failed.  I am successful with some but always tend to put the weight back on.  My weight affects so much of my life.  I never want to be included in family photos, it's hard for me to feel comfortable eating in public.  I am sure everyone is watching and judging.  And recently my kids have made comments about having a "soft" and "squishy" mom.  
  While I was in clinicals for grad school I kept trying to stick to diets, but the stress levels were to high and I just could not pile diet on top of everything else going on.  I decided that I would not even think about my weight until I was complete,y done with Grad school.  Well, I am done!  It's time to get my house, my head, and my body in together.  No more excuses!
  Today, I have started my first official day of Medifast.  I have not tried this diet in the past, but have read positive reviews.  I have been acquiring meals off of Craigslist and eBay at a cheaper rate then buying them from the company.  I have not been hungry really.  The only issue I have had are headaches which I hear are fairly common the first week.
  I have added a weight loss / BMI tracker to the bottom of the blog.  I am going to weigh myself every Sunday.

What has been going on since 2009?

Oh my gosh!!! I have been away for such a long time.  No one is probably even following my blog anymore.  To those of you who may check back from time to time - here is an update on the chaos and insanity that has occurred since 2009.

Where to start?  We no longer live in Las Vegas, NV.  I moved up here in August of 2009 in order to get Vivie out of foster care.  Who is Viv?  Well she was my niece and now is my adoptive daughter.  My sister, who suffers from severe mental illness, lost her to DHS in Oregon when she was less than a year old.  My partner, Gianni, and I tried to have her transferred to Las Vegas like I did with Sebastian.  Nevada refused to accept Vivienne as an interstate transfer.  We even hired an attorney, which was a complete waste of money.  So, Gianni and I had to make a tough decision: have Vivienne adopted out to a strange family and stay in Vegas or leave everything in Vegas (including my home and older kids), move to Portland, Oregon to adopt Vivie.  We chose the latter.  

A year and a half later we adopted Vivienne Rose Filippini Rochon.  Six months after Vivie came to live with us we found out that my sister had another baby - Faye.  We brought home Faye (we have since changed her name to Lucy) home from the hospital when she was only 4 days old.  So, a head count of who is currently residing in our home: Myself, Gianni, Sebastian (Bash age 9), Vivienne (Vivie - age 6), Lucy (Lulu - age 22 mos), Radar (Great Dane), Willow (Great Dane), Zepplin (Great Dane), Irie (Pomeranian), 5 chickens, and one recently acquired porch cat, MeowMeow.

The other big big news is that I have officially completed Graduate School from Frontier Nursing University.  Last week, I passed my boards and am now a Certified Nurse Midwife! Woooooo Hooo! 

This is a very short short breakdown of what has happened since my last blog.  I am sure that more details will come out as I continue to blog (yes, I am going to keep the blog going).  

It's Been A Long Long Time

I know it seems like a lifetime ago since the last time I posted anything on this blog. I think about it from time to time but time just seems to get away from me. There are some pretty big changes on the horizon.

I am relocating to Portland in less than a week. It's so weird! But the only way I have any hope of getting little Vivien out of foster care is to relocate. So, this Friday Bash, Skylar, and myself will be driving the little Mini 1200 miles to Portland. Next Monday I will be starting a new job. I am back on night shift in Labor and Delivery. The dogs and my partner will be staying in Las Vegas for the time being. Skylar is only coming to Portland to help me get settled. My hope is that both she and Dante will eventually relocate to Portland.

School is going. I am now in the Graduate part of the program. I have 1 1/2 years till I am finished. I can not wait!!!

I know a lot of you were following my blog because I was looking at adopting internationally. I had found little Claire in Uganda who was HIV positive and needed a home. I had sent in the application to AFAA and had to put things on hold due to little Vivie's circumstances. I found out about 3 or 4 months ago that little Claire had passed away. I have been very sad regarding her passing. She never knew that a family from the other side of the world looked at her beautiful picture everyday. My hopes had been to finsh her adoption as soon as I knew Vivie was settled. I still have her picture with her beautiful smile on my fridge.

I am sure many of you are asking why I am relocating to Portland as opposed to having Viv transferred to Nevada. That is the process that took place with Bash. The state of Nevada has denied my application twice to have Vivien transferred to Nevada to be with her family. I even hired an attorney, which was a complete waste of $2500.00.