TAADAAA

My sweet little munchkins loved trick or treating!! I found Noah a cute little dragon costume and thought Allie would be a princess.  Allie has decided that dresses are itchy and uncomfortable so we had to improvise :)  She loves wearing her leotard around the house so we found some leg warmers and tada...we have our little gold medal gymnast! :

Noah still wore his dragon and was quite the trooper sitting in the stroller freezing :)

We are beyond blessed with such wonderful babies! We love our little neighborhood and had a blast getting to catch up with everyone handing out candy :)

Noah is now walking (where has time gone!) and loves trying to keep up with his big sister.  He had been taking a few steps and took off this weekend.  His first tooth just finally broke through as well!! Mommy wants her little man to quit growing up so fast!!

Here is a quick snap shot of our little family at the beach a few weeks ago!

Real Problems...REAL solutions!

So while watching the debate last night I started thinking about all the REAL problems we have in our country and how we need REAL solutions.  Of course that got me thinking about what am I doing in my life to find real solutions to problems.  A few current things that have become a priority in the last few months: My relationship first and foremost with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I have realized that this is the number one priority in my life, yet I often go days at a time without spending quality time investing in my spiritual life.  Secondly, my relationship with my husband.  Life with two kids is a little crazy and during the summer time Michael is busy building his landscaping company.  After long days, I would often choose to check out once the kids went to bed. I realized that this is at times necessary, but quality time with my husband is just as and on most days WAY MORE important.  After meeting with several dear christian friends over dinner we realized that date nights MUST become a priority.  So we have begun dating each other more. Its amazing how getting out of the house with no *little* distractions you can actually COMMUNICATE!!  After Christ, our marriage should be our number one priority.  We think its our children, but what your children need most is parents that really truly LOVE and respect one another. The way we treat and relate to our spouse speaks VOLUMES to our children when we don't even realize it.  Allie is at the age where she is testing the boundaries all day long with me.  When Michael walks through the door every night she starts over hoping to get a little leverage over him.  It is VITAL that we defend our spouse and demand respect from our children when relating to their fathers.  Our children must learn respect and if we don't teach them at home towards mom and dad they will learn that they can bend the rules to fit their desires.  That is not beneficial to them or our spouses.  Ok, so that was a lot, but I am realizing that I must teach Allie to respect her daddy and not walk all over him because he is more tolerant of things because he only has a few hours with her.  He loves her and requires her obedience, but she must still respect him and obey immediately.  Thirdly prioritizing quality time with my kids. Its easy to get distracted with all the house chores that need to get done but my kids just want their mommy.  They don't care about the cheerios on the floor, they want me on the floor interacting and being intentional with their needs.

Finally, my health.  I have always been decently healthy and tried to make good decisions for my health.   People keep asking about AdvoCare and why all of a sudden I care about this crazy stuff and here is the deal: IT WORKS!!!  We all have health needs.  For many people its the need for weight loss for health reasons and personal reasons.  I know carrying the extra weight from Noah was very frustrating for me personally. I did not like the way I felt. I was sick of NOTHING fitting and wanting to throw a fit every time we left the house because I had no clothes to wear and hated the way I felt.  I had tried fad diets and nothing seemed to get permanent results.  I was breastfeeding Noah still and did not want to lost my milk supply.  AdvoCare gave me a healthy set plan with pretty much guaranteed results.  I was not completely sold when I initially started taking products because to be honest, it sounded way to good to be true.  But here is what I found.  When you start putting good food in your system and using world class nutrition products in your system to help those foods work FOR YOU your body responds positively.  I did not change the amount I ate initially because I was nursing, but just WHAT I ate, and I started seeing results.  I had lost 5 lbs and managed to keep nursing and keep the weight off over the next month.  Once I finished nursing, I wanted to push hard to really achieve my weight loss goals so Michael and I decided to do the 24 day challenge.  We love the challenge because it give you a food guide of recommendations to help get better foods into your body.  I really loved it because I am a needs results FAST kinda person, so I loved knowing that in 24 days I was going to see results. That alone was music to my ears and enough to sign me up! :) After the challenge I am now down a total of 15 lbs and Michael is town 15 in less than a month! Best part....the weight loss was REAL and the lbs are NOT COMING back. :)  My sister and her husband are down over 30 lbs as well and are still losing more weight with maintaining a healthy diet.

One thing that may surprise people is that AdvoCare is NOT a weight loss or energy company. They are a nutrition and wellness company.  Their products are science based and approved my an advisory board that validates the products safety and efficacy.  

If this sounds at all like something you want to know more about please don't be afraid to ask.  The only reason I have chosen to invest in this company is my desire to help people.  Whether your desire is to find a solution to persistent gut issues, you need weight loss, you need energy or just better wellness, this company has many things to offer.  The other side of this company is the business opportunity. If you need a plan B income to help with a car payment, vacation or need to pay of that pesky debt that keeps following you around, there is great income potential within this company.

All of that to say, I have been SO impressed with this company. Not only do they have incredible world class nutritional products, but motivating and inspirational leadership.  Being part of a company that genuinely cares to help others meet their nutritional, wellness and financial needs is amazing.  

Life Lately!

I have been incredibly blessed to have married an AMAZING man with wonderful parents! I know that this blessing is an priceless and I thank God daily for the gift of my in laws not only for raising an incredible son who is a wonderful husband and father, or for how wonderfully they love and care for our precious kiddos, but also the way the love and serve me so sacrificially.  All of that to say, that they have been Independent Distributors for an elite nutritional company called AdvoCare.  13 years ago when they began taking products they gained better health, achieved their weight loss goals which they have maintained for the last 13 years, and were able to build incredible relationships with this opportunity which also gave them extra income to help pay for the boys college education.  Michael took many products in high school and college while playing football and baseball.  I knew the company had great products, but I never really saw a need for taking supplements.

Fast forward a few years and I now have had two sweet babies and a crazy life that has left little room for "mommy time" :)  Since having Noah just before the new year I have had a stubborn 15 lbs that just DONT WANNA COME OFF!  I love getting to nurse my babies, so I knew that my body was going to hold onto a little extra fat, but I was still frustrated that none of my clothes were fitting and I really did not feel good in my own skin.  My amazing hard working husband has a side job that he started doing Landscaping.  What started as cutting a few neighbors has turned into quite the business venture. Needless to day, summers bring us long days and weekends with handsome hubby working hard to balance work with family time.  He does an amazing job, but mommy tends to get overwhelmed with the never-ending job of being a MOMMY!!   Its definitely the greatest and hardest job I have ever done.  The Lord was greatly working on my heart this summer on my attitude in life.  Michael and I constantly referred to it as me learning to "pull my big girl panties up and move on."  Thats the easiest way to describe it.  I wanted to mope and complain about all the hard things, when in reality God has overly blessed our lives in SOOO many ways, and He wanted to get my attention and teach me to focus on what really matters. My faith, my family and my friends.  I love reading blogs, and kept being drawn to a friend from college who kept putting motivational quotes and inspiring stories on her page.  I was so frustrated with my body and the fact that my extra few lbs was just not going to melt away.  I kept reading this girls post and found myself longing to do more and be more.  I began searching my soul for what  I really wanted in life.  She then posted her story about AdvoCare and how the products gave her energy to get out and exercise and do the things she wanted to do.   I decided to really look into these products again because I knew from my mother in law that they really did work.

So, in May my grandmother passed away which was a very difficult time for our family.  My sister and I decided to make the drive from Atlanta to Arkansas for the funeral.  Neither of our husbands would be able to make the trip, so we decided to load the babies up and head out together!  My amazing mother in law had been praying hard for me because I expressed my fear and frustrations that I knew would arise at some point during the trip.  She sent me on my way with several samples of Spark (AdvoCares nutritional energy drink) and away we went.  The drive to Arkansas was not too bad because we had my dad in the car with us.  We had a wonderful time visiting with family but we were DREADING the drive home.  We headed out at 5pm drove 4 hours and stopped at a hotel. We hauled 3 kids and 3 pack n plays up into the hotel at 12 am and got only a few hours of sleep admits crying babies and restless mommies.  As we hoped in the car the next morning with a 10 hour drive ahead of us and 3 kids ( 5 months, 6months and 2 years)....and needless to say we were NOT looking forward to the day ahead.  I pulled out the Spark and told Sara we might as well give it a try! What do we have to lose? :)  The hours went by quickly, we were both surprisingly awake and focused when driving and not quickly irritated with the kids.  AND WE WERE SOLD!

We quickly realized this product was as wonderful as it claimed to be!  After a few days I called my mother in law and asked what products I could get on while nursing.  I quickly started taking a daily vitamin, omega 3 supplement and a product that helps you tone and lean up.  I was amazed by how much better I felt just taking the vitamins.  I asked Michael if he was ok if I kept taking them because I loved the way I was feeling. He said...are you kidding, of course you can its like I hired a maid and a nanny.  You are so productive and have so much more energy its SOOOO worth it!  About this time I was reading about several friends having lost weight using AdvoCare's 24 Day Challenge.  I discovered that there was a modified version of the challenge for breastfeeding moms and I was pumped.  My sister and I decided to sign up as Distributors to get a 20% discount and get some more Spark, and I purchased the products to do the challenge.  I lost 5lbs within the first 10 days and was PUMPED to say the least! If I was not sold before, I really was now.  I kept getting healthy and maintained my weight over the next 2 months.  About a month ago as my supply began to slow up I decided to quit nursing.  I started the full 24 day challenge with Michael and we have both seen awesome results.  I am now to my pre-pregnancy weight and fitting into all my clothes again! Michael is fitting into his shirts that were always a little too small and they are now almost too big.  Its amazing how when you take action and get control over your health and body how much confidence you gain.  
My sister and her husband have lost a combined total over 30 lbs and continue to lose weight even after the challenge.  I never thought I would look at the business side of AdvoCare, but the joy I have found in regaining my health has inspired me to offer others the same opportunity.  There is huge potiential in AdvoCare to develop another source of income that can help people get out of debt, pay for medical bills, or be proactive in preparing for their future.   I have not been in the company long, but have been blown away by the incredible passion and faith in the leaders.   I am constantly encouraged to become a better person  starting with my faith which leads to me becoming a better wife, mother and friend!  If you would like more information on products or the business side please let me know and Ill get you the information you need! 
In Him, Renee

It's been a while...

So I am a terrible blogger and have been away for a while now! Not only is my little munchkin Allie almost 2 1/2 but we have another little munchkin that is 7 months old! Noah arrived right before Christmas last year and is such a little mommas boy! Soooo thankful the Lord gave me one of each because man its so fun! I love my precious little girl and all the precious things little girls do.  It's been such a joy to watch her learn how to love and care for her little brother.  
 My little love bug Nosh has the sweetest spirit. He is so content and loves to be snuggled...which mommy will never complain about! He has mastered the army crawl and rocks back and forth on his knees all the time, so it won't be long and he will really be on the move!
I am finally settling into life with two children.  There have been many days that my perfectionist self struggled to enjoy the challenges of staying home full time, but slowly but surely the Lord is molding me into the woman He has called me to be.  There is definitely no greater joy...and no greater sacrifice... than giving all my time and energy loving and caring for my crazy bunch! 
Our summers are crazy busy cause my super man husband started a side business a few years ago doing landscaping.  It has grown to nearly a full time job...although he is still employed full time ...which leaves not much time for much else. He somehow manages to keep a perfect balance between work and home giving our family as much time and energy as he has!  The Lord continues to be faithful at opening doors allowing my husband to do what he loves, and providing the right help and the right time when things start to get a little crazy.
My children are now awake so Im going to run but I hope to be back soon to update the world on my newest venture in AdvoCare!