The Murphys become foster parents....

Doggy foster parents that is!!

Last night I was checking craigslist for puppies. We've been looking casually for a while and just haven't found the right fit. But I check the local shelters, rescues, and craigslist a couple times a week in case something comes up.

So last night....

There was a post from a rescue organization. There's a dog at the collier county shelter that is scheduled to be out down this week. He's a year old beagle mix and very cute. But he has heartworm. And it's hard to find people willing to adopt a "special needs" dog. So euthanasia it was for the sweet little guy. But then - a rescue stepped in (eyesofanangelpetrescue.com) and offered to take him, treat his heartworm, and find him a forever home. The only thing was - they needed a foster home for him while he got his treatment and they found him a place to live.

I've thought about fostering dogs a couple of different times, but never really pursued it. But this little guy really stood out to me and I couldn't let him die. I mean - maybe someone else would have stepped up if we hadn't, but maybe not too. And I am such a softie when it comes to animals. I just could not leave the poor guy to die when there were options available - he just needed a home for a while.

So I asked James if he could stay with us until he found a permanent home and he said yes. He's a bit of a softie too lol. We emailed the rescue right away to let them know we wanted to help foster the dog and the replied first thing this morning. I sent them an application, let them know about our cats and Corbin and work schedule and whatnot, and we were approved to foster a couple hours later. A wonderful rescue volunteer called just a few minutes ago to go over all the details with us. Puppy will be neutered Tuesday or Wednesday and be here shortly after that. He will stay with us until it's time to go to Miami for treatment for his heartworm. Then someone will pick him up and take him there for a couple of nights. He'll come back to us after that. In 6 weeks, he'll go back again for a retest for heartworms and we go from there.

Now we just need a name for him....

talk about conviction

James 1:26 (New International Version)

²⁶If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.


I work with a lot of women. Mostly women in fact. Now it's a well known fact that women are gossipy and often mean, but my work place is exceptionally gossipy. It's crazy.

When I started there, I swore I would not fall into the trap of gossip. I mean, first of all, it's wrong. But also - I don't like drama at work and gossip causes drama. And if those people are talking about everyone else, Lord knows they're talking about you too. So why contribute to it?

But....

I am a girl. And I'm a girl who really enjoys gossip. Yes, it's wrong. But it's true. I like it. So 5 weeks after starting there, I'm noticing myself being rather quick to jump into the gossipy conversations with my opinion of whatever or whoever they're talking about. I'm feeling a bit guilty, but brush it off, b/c it's easier to ignore the guilt, then to deal with my gossip issue.

Until....

Last Wednesday night I'm at church. I go to this Bible Study down in Naples, with my wonderful friend Cherie. We're doing a study called 8 choices that will change a woman's life (http://www.amazon.com/Choices-That-Will-Change-Womans/dp/1582293511/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1268696812&sr=8-1) and we were talking about the choice to speak wisely or foolishly. I did not have my book yet, so had no idea what we were discussing. Actually...come to think of it...I still don't have my book. Meant to order it on Amazon and got distracted. Such is life lol.

Ok anyways....

Like the first verse we read is James 1:26.. Awesome verse. My heart felt so heavy right then and there. I mean serious conviction. The girls at work know I go to church. They know I claim to be a Christian. And here I am running my mouth just like they are. Not saying much for God now am I? So I decided right there to make an effort to stop talking about others. I also decided to try and make sure the words that come out of my mouth are kind - even when they are words of correction. BAsically, if it's not true, kind, or necessary it does not need to come out of my mouth.

This is not an easy task. Like I said - not only am I a girl - I also enjoy gossip. And sometimes I am unnecessarily harsh when talking to others. I have gotten better about stopping myself from gossiping, but of course things still pop out from time to time. It's only been like 5 days lol. But it's becoming easier to get up and walk away when others are gossiping around me. If I'm in a situation where I can't leave, I try to sit quietly and not participate. It's not easy, but I feel good b/c I know I'm trying to do what is right.

The Last Ten Pounds

I have been dieting since Corbin was born. I started at 210lbs the day he was born and I'm 142-145 now (depends on the day and how much pizza I've consumed the night before lol) I've lost around 65lbs since the day he was born. The first 20 were super easy of course - gone by the six week check up. The last 45ish....I've had to fight for those.

I'm not a good dieter. I've used Weight Watchers for the most part and have done well with that. But I still have had moments where I've fallen completely off the wagon and eaten whatever I've wanted to for a week or two (or more lol). I've had set backs that were completely out of my control...and things happen that maybe I could've responded to by not eating a tub of ice cream. But I've learned a lot about eating right. I've learned a lot about living a healthy lifestyle. And I've learned a lot about myself.

The biggest surprise?

I LOVE the gym. I don't love getting there - I have to pep talk myself into that. But once I'm there, it's not bad. And afterwards? I feel AWESOME. It completely caught me off guard. I never worked out until I was fat. And now I get grumpy if I have to miss a week for any reason.

I'm within 10lbs of my goal weight, but was getting tired of dieting. Just wanted a break. Not a pig out, gain 5lbs break. More a trial for when I finally hit my goal and went into maintenance. I have been around the same weight since my surgery in October. Gained about 5lbs b/t that and Christmas. So I spent the month of January dealing with that. It came off easily and so I was once again staring down the last 10lbs.

I've heard how hard loosing the last 10lbs can be. Scary stuff. So truthfully...it was easier to just start maintaining now and not worry about the last 10lbs. So for the last month, I've been in "maintenance" and really it's not that hard. I still weigh what I weighed a month ago and haven't been tracking points hardcore or anything like that. Everything is peachy, right?

Except....

I don't like maintenance - at least not yet. It almost feels like a waste to get so close to my goal and stop now. So I changed my settings on WW online and started counting everything I even think about eating. My goal is to be firmly in the 130's by Easter - as in, when I've eaten everything under the sun the night before, I still want the scale to say 138ish the next morning lol.

If you're interested....here are some fun before and current pics:

175ish

160ish:

A couple of weeks ago

So in an attempt to get in a post a week, here's some stuff about our uneventful week.

We came home from my parents house on Tuesday. I was sick with the crud - head, chest, throat, fever...general yuckiness. Went to bed on Tuesday and slept all day. I had planned to work on Wednesday, but when I woke up at 3am coughing so hard and so much I couldn't sleep, I called in. Well employee health called later that morning and informed me that since I had flu symptoms and didn't get a flu shot, I would be staying home until Monday at the soonest. Lovely. So I spent Wednesday, Thursday, and most of today (Friday) in bed. Good stuff. I was quite thankful that Corbin now goes to daycare, as I was able to get lots of rest. I'm feeling pretty good today - still having some head stuffiness, but getting better.

James did a great job taking care of Corbin, the house, and me. I'm so glad he's not one of those husbands who doesn't do childcare or housework. That would drive me crazy. He's pretty good at keeping things running smoothly when I'm out of commission.

OH!!! While we were gone, we inherited another cat. My sister-in-law broke up with her boyfriend and needed a place to leave her cat. His name is Goose and he gets along pretty well with Rocko. He sheds a ton though.