I am a person that most definitely gets cravings.  And that usually isn’t a good thing.  Most of the time my cravings are for something big and chocolatey.  It’s not all the time and it’s not always a sweet but I do struggle against them when I am trying to have a healthy lifestyle.  Lately I haven’t paid much attention at all and if I had a craving I filled it because I was busy and, honestly, didn’t really care that much.  That is SUCH a bad place to be in and I am trying to be much more mindful of when and why cravings hit.

Where does that leave me?  How do I block out the cravings or ignore them when they come on?  More than anything I think the answer is I don’t ignore them, I don’t try to block them out, but that I try to attack them head on.  Acting like they are going to go away is never a good thing.  It doesn’t work.  All it does it make the craving worse and then even harder to ignore.

There are things I have found that help me with cravings.  One thing is assessing why I’m having the craving.  Am I stressed out and worked up over school and everything else?  Am I hormonal and emotional and don’t really want to deal with it?  I have to think about these things and try to decide where the craving is coming from.  If it’s from stress there are a LOT of times that a good work out with make me feel SO much better that the craving passes.  If it’s emotional or hormonal usually a talk with a friend to get out my emotions and just talk it out will make that craving less important.

That’s not to say that the cravings always go away.  That would be too easy.  But that doesn’t mean I have to deprive myself when absolutely nothing else will do but something sweet.  First, I can do something at least moderately good, like a low-cal but sweet snack, like the awesome Ginger Snaps Weight Watchers® offers.  It’s not something they have all year long, only at limited times.  Last year I fell in love with them so I bought like 10 boxes (there are only 3 packages in a box) so that I would have them when one of those cravings hit.  A small bag is only 3 points but it makes me so happy.  I can make a nice hot cup of coffee and savor my little cookies and I feel like I’m getting a treat.  Last week I found the 3 boxes I still had left in the pantry.  I was ridiculously happy about it to say the least.

Normally I try to steer away from pre-packaged foods to track my points because I don’t want to be reliant on them for a healthy lifestyle.  These don’t feel like that, these just feel like something yummy that I do to be nice to myself.

Okay, so I talked about a couple of ways to deal with cravings, figuring out why and how to get past them and satisfying them with something good.  I absolutely know those do NOT always work.  Sometimes you just have to have what you’re craving.  I don’t think this is a horrible thing, as I do think that tracking and moderation are the key when this kind of craving hits.

Last week I absolutely wanted NOTHING other than chocolate.  I tried drinking water, I tried working out, and I tried figuring out why.  Those things didn’t work.  I finally did what I wanted and ate some homemade chocolate frosting.  And it was GOOD.  It was also 12 pts.  And I get 33 points a day.  If I had an eyes bugging out of my head emoticon to put here I would.  It was not a lot of a SMALL amount of frosting but at the time it was what I wanted more than anything else.  I also tracked it and compensated for it throughout the rest of the day.  Sure, it wasn’t the most healthy way to spend my points but did it kill me?  Nope, not even close.  I’m still working out more, making healthy choices, and trying to live a healthy life.

I guess my final point about cravings is that as long as you recognize them, you deal with them, and if you’re trying to watch your calories or points that you account for them, that cravings are NOT the end of the world and you should NOT beat yourself up for them.

Hhhhhmmm, I think I hear some Ginger Snaps calling my name!

I know it’s been a bit of a theme here but lately I have had a LOT of support. Currently I’m unemployed but I am a full-time nursing student and that takes a lot of time and energy from a lot of people to accomplish everything that it involves.

First, Gabe is my biggest supporter.  He always tells me I’m smart enough and that I will do well at anything I put my mind too.  He makes sure I have time to study by keeping the kids distracted when I’m stressing over homework or an upcoming test (like this last week).  He texts me and tells me how awesome I’m going to do on a test and when I don’t always do awesome he’s right there telling me how I will kick butt on the next one.  This school stuff isn’t easy on our family but he’s behind me every step of the way.

Second, I have fabulous help with the kiddos.  On days I have tests or need to be at school early my aunt Cheryl and my sister-in-law Rachel pick up Aiden from school for me.  That is a stress reliever like I can’t even explain.  When I don’t have to worry about fighting traffic and getting to school in time for my test, I am able to focus on just studying and being prepared.

Third, my classmates talk me down when I get ridiculously worked up and lift me up when I’m not sure if I’m ever going to get all of this.  I know I’ve talked about them before but Whitney, Jenny, Jade, Jessica, Liz, Tina, Beth, Kat, Ashley, Andy, and Lauren (agh!  I’m probably leaving someone out.  Sorry!!) all laugh with me, cry with me, encourage me when I need it, or vent about everything that we’re going through when we just need to get it off our chests.  They hug me when I have a break down and cheer me on when I have a triumph.  These people have my back and I most definitely have theirs.

Last, but most definitely not least, are my kiddos.  How much support can they offer you might ask?  So much more than I can say.  When I’m tired and stressed out and just plain done, a smile from them and an “I love you mommy” mean more than just about anything else in the world.

To say I am blessed by the support I have from all of these people would be an understatement.  These people are my rocks.

You all know I’m in nursing school right?  Okay, well if you didn’t know, now you do.  So, this week I struggled with trying to start my running training program while balancing the need to study for a Pharmacology test.  Last semester I struggled with my Med-Surg class and did great in Pharmacology.  This semester it is the exact opposite.  So far I am kicking butt at Med-Surg and STRUGGLING with Pharmacology.

When I say it’s the bane of my existence, I really am not exaggerating that it is making me miserable.  I did NOT do well on the first two quizzes and tests, which just made my stress for today’s test all that more extreme.  If I do not pass this class with at least a 75%, I will have to take it again, which really isn’t in our budget and I really do NOT want to spend this summer in school if I can avoid it.

Today I met with Whitney and my fabulous friend Jade a few hours before the test and had a quick review/cram session.  To say it helped me feel better going in to the test would be an understatement.  I have a difficult time just sitting, reading, reviewing, and retaining.  I do much better when I talk and listen and bounce the facts off of the people around me.  I also had my girl Jenny holding my hand and calming my anxiety right before the test to get right of all the negative thoughts going through my head in that moment.  How great are these people??

I felt confident about so many of my answers as I put them on the test.  I even changed two answers because I just knew I had answered wrong the first time (although I know you should NEVER change an answer from your first instinct) and I had changed them to the correct ones!  I walked out of the test actually feeling like I did well.  I wasn’t wrong!  I was able to achieve a 90/100, which is fabulous in my book at this point and I could not be happier.

Pharmacology may currently be the bane of my existence but I know that with the fabulous group of people I have around me to support me (and me them in return!) that I can conquer this challenge.  Nursing is my future, this is just one step on that road.

I have an issue with my weight.  I have a LOT of issues with my weight.  I have struggled with my weight and fitness since before I even had the kiddos and of course after having them it did NOT get any better.

You might ask where weight fits in a blog about modesty but I think it fits in just right.  I believe things should be done modestly and in moderation and yet lately I have been eating like it’s going out of style.  How in the world does that fit in to a modest lifestyle?  Well, it doesn’t.  Not really.  Living a healthy lifestyle and working on my weight will definitely be a part of this page.

Time for a little history to those that either don’t know me well or haven’t been privy to my previous blogging.  Three years ago I used the Weight Watchers points program to get my eating under control and focus on healthy living.  It worked wonders and I was able to lose weight and get in much better shape.  That didn’t last when I started back to school and stopped focusing on myself.  I was working full-time and going to school and eventually something had to give and that was my health/weight.  I’m not blaming anyone, I take full responsibility for it.  It’s life.  Sometimes life ends up winning out but it doesn’t make it good.

Last summer in July I recognized the direction I was going and decided I needed to have some accountability again and decided to join Weight Watchers and use the new PointsPlus program and go to the meetings.  Again, I did great because I paid attention to myself and what I was eating and how much I was exercising.  I lost about 15 pounds and was exercising at least 4 times a week.

Then came nursing school.  Wow.  That was something I was just not prepared for.  I mean, don’t get me wrong, I certainly didn’t think it was going to be easy but I had no idea just how hard it was going to be.  I was still working full-time when I started last August.  I had taken all of my previous classes on a part-time basis and going to school full-time was a whole new animal for me.  Not only is nursing school a full-time job in and of itself, but the work required to do well is so much more above and beyond than I can say.  And really, given the profession we’re talking about, I would expect no less.  I don’t want to be an undereducated person out there trying to give people good nursing care, far from it.   All of that together, along with losing my job, equaled me quitting Weight Watchers to save time and money, and me putting on that 15 pounds I lost last summer.  Yeah, not so great.

I know I’m not alone.  I know a lot of people struggle with their weight and some of my friends in nursing school also went through the 10-15 pound gain that I did.  That’s just how time consuming and stressful it all is.  I’m not letting that win out though.  A few weeks ago I decided to start working out again and my awesome friend, Whitney, has been doing the same program and encouraging me to keep it up.  I do know that it’s not enough to just exercise though.  Last week I finally admitted to myself that I was just blindly going through and filling my body up with junk.  And I’m over it.  I know myself and I know that without accountability and without structure that I’m horrible about choosing things to eat.

So where does that leave me?  Joining Weight Watchers once again to give me the structure I need to have to be successful and healthy.  I jumped in on Saturday and could not feel better that I am making good choices to make a change.  I found out yesterday that another friend just joined last weekend too and I could not be happier to have a buddy on this journey.  I’m not going to out here here, so to speak, because that’s her journey but I’ll just say that she’s awesome and I’m so excited that she’s making fabulous choices for herself too.

I know that hitting the goal I put out for this year of running a half marathon is not going to happen without me putting in a lot of work.  While I was working out more before, now I’m making the food fit with everything else and I know that if I put in the work that my goal is not unattainable.  A good exercise program along with the right food I put in my body are the things I need to make this happen.  I also do want to lose weight (who doesn’t?!) and I will be tracking that here with some regularity.

I saw a quote this week that said “Winners are not people who never fail, but people who never quit”.  Yep, I’m not at the weight I want to be and haven’t hit my goals yet but I am definitely not quitting.  There may just be a winner in me yet!

I’m trying to get back on track with this blog after illness and birthdays and everything else that got in the way.  That being the case, we’re back on for trends!

Something I didn’t understand, and didn’t think would look good on me, for the last couple of seasons was open front cardigans.  I didn’t understand hanging ends and all of the drapiness.  It didn’t make sense to me and I didn’t see how it would work on me.  How could a woman with an hourglass figure that can be swallowed in something too flowing possibly wear this?

Simply Vera, Vera Wang, Kohl's ($24.99)

I was WRONG!  I bought my first open front cardigan on clearance after Christmas this year at Kohl’s.  Three weeks later I bought another one at Target because I was hooked.  I’m actually a little in love with the pic I posted but since Spring is upon us I don’t really want to buy anything long-sleeved at this point.

I didn’t realize it’s all about what you put with the cardigan that can make all the difference.  If you put something figure hugging then you can still show off your shape in something this sheer.  Or, for a different look, a thick belt around the waist can bring it all in to emphasize the smallest part of you or give you a waist if that’s where one of your “problem areas” is.

I love this trendy piece and hope that it continues.  Not only is it fun and versatile but it is so budget friendly!  I was wrong at first glance in my judgement of the upon front cardigan but a few of these in your closet will give you options to dress up or down an outfit and have all kinds of different looks.

It’s officially Spring and while that may mean tornado warnings and crazy hail in March, it also means some very pretty things.

Gabe took this photo on the IU campus at work this week and I just had to share it. I love to see the new life, and feel the new possibilities, Spring brings.

I have offered an awesome deal here before and if you missed out on it you have another chance!  Gabe is offering his books for FREE.  Yes, for FREE.  I’m putting a link to his offer on this post.  If you have a Kindle or the Kindle app on your computer, tablet, or smartphone then you can read Gabe’s books without having to pay a cent.  So here it is.  Go get them before this ends at the end of the day on March 24th!

http://www.amazon.com/Gabriel-Beyers/e/B00545OA7U/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0