Plugging Along

This week has been crazy!!!! Keaton is enduring it well. We may not be posting every day this week but Keaton has kept up on his mile each day and continues to make better food choices. He is leaving for the weekend and will return to me on Christmas Eve (very sad). I am sure he will work hard with his dad. (HINT HINT STEPHEN....please work with him while in your care.)

Love you my baby!!

I Am Back

• 22:30
• 1 mile
• 3.9
• 89.5 cal
• 170 pulse

In his own words....I am feeling better about myself because my time is getting better. I am doing good about my weight. Friday when I weighed myself I had lost 2.4 lbs. (WOW) My black pants when I first got them were really tight but now they are really loose. Whenever I play football with my friends, my pants fall down. I am glad that it is doing that but not when it falls down. Now I don't have to have a motivator. All I have to look at is myself being good trying to get this done. I have been having fun with my friend Austin. We just finished the book Diary of the Wimpy Kid, Rodricks Rules in three days. Now I am working on Diary, Dog Days with my friend Sam. I am doing really good about food choices. Every time I get home from school I ask if I can have an orange and she says yes. It is so juicy. It is different from before because I would have cookies or chips or something. But now, the new me, I don't like being the big kid anymore so I made good choices on what I am eating. (Awesome)

Keaton surprises me each day with his efforts. Today, I was heading home from ISU when he walked in from school. I got a call on my cell phone and what did my ears hear but the sound of Keaton asking if it was ok to have an orange for snack. I am not going to lie. In the past I have been afraid to be away from home when he got home because I feared what foods he would try to sneak before I got there. Now, he wants to eat healthy. Quickly he reminded me we were out of oranges and he would need more for tomorrow. :) I went produce shopping while he was at scouts. This is finals week for me and sadly I have put off an entire semester of writing for this week. Translation, I am not making dinner. Even with less than perfect dinner choices he is holding strong. Way to go my boy!! You make me so proud to be your mother.

A New Day

Thursday Dec 10

• 101 cal
• 31.7 fat cal
• 1.00 miles
• 4.0 laps
• 23:25 (CHECK THAT OUT)
• pulse 172

In his words...I think I did good today with what I was eating. I didn't have seconds with breakfast or lunch. (AWESOME!) I wanted to have a cucumber for snack. While I was pealing it Taron, my brother, said let's hurry and show mom our sledding slides and when I did that mom ate it. I feel very good about the comments I am getting. Sometime they make my mom cry. I am really happy about the time I did on my mile because that is the lowest I have ever gotten and I did it by myself with no motivation. Yesterday I was kind of nervous about putting my real feelings on the blog but mom encouraged me to be honest. This is my journey and I have to be honest. I feel better about myself today because I made good choices about not having seconds and getting my mile in. That's all.

Keaton is my inspiration. I am grateful for his decision. This evening grandma stopped by and was here when I got home from class. A little later, my sister Sharen, her husband and baby Jaxon stopped by with holiday treats. It really would have been easy for Keaton to back out of his workout. Once in there....on his own...he pushed himself to beat his last mile. Just a little thought about yesterday. Keaton really struggles with what he wanted to share. He was really hard on himself but didn't want to disappoint people (I think himself.) I realize it is more that just what he eats and how much he runs. This journey is also about dealing with the reason he (and I) struggle with our weight. If you knew Keaton, you would know his love is big enough to take everyone in. He tries to protect me. He worries about those around us. I can't say I don't have my struggles with him, but overall he really is my light and strength. For me this is not about him loosing weight. It is about stopping the pain. Tomorrow he is going to weigh first thing in the morning. I am hoping for a positive reading (or should I say a negative one). This kid deserves it.

Wed---Have to Regroup

In his words.....I didn't do my mile today but ...and I didn't do a good choice of foods. At breakfast I had seconds and while my mom was at class I had a bagel with cream cheese and a bowl of cereal after she told me to have a fruit or a vegetable while she was gone. I didn't do my mile but I want to work harder on doing it. There is a reason why mom tells me to get it done early...so I can do the fun stuff when mom gets home and in the evening. But I did make a good choice for dinner. I helped make a green salad and I said that steak isn't so good for you mom because it has fat. But if you don't eat alot of the steak it can be healthy for you sometimes. My goal for tomorrow is to make good food choices and get my mile done before mom gets back from class.

Today was a little more difficult than the last few days. On Wed and Thurs I have class from 4-6:30. High snacking time. I gave Keaton very specific instructions for while I was gone. Get his exercise done and only fruit or veg for snack. Neither of which happened. I planned to pick up some steak and lettuce on my way home for dinner. I got home and was disappointed. But we talked about just doing better the next day. Like forgiveness, we try again and do better. Now he understands much better why I encourage him to get the exercise in early. On the bright side.....the kids did play out back sledding for an hour while I was in class and that really is one of the best workouts.....you don't know it is exercise. So we will all try better tomorrow.

Of course I didn't do much better today....My meals were good but while going to the store just for lettuce and steak, I found Boston baked beans and covered almonds in the bulk session. Bad choice Tara, but oh so good right now as I am all alone and wanting a little treat.

Tuesday

• 144 cal
• 45.3 fat cal
• 1.5 miles (yeah!!!)
• 6 laps
• 29:58 -Keaton wants everyone to know he did the same distance as the day before in 24:40....shaved off four minutes!

In his words...ummm....which one would be better...chicken Alfredo or pizza stick?...it is hard to make a good choice when I don't know which is better. I chose pizza stick for lunch at school. When I got home from school I had a banana for snack. After I ate that I felt better because I am making good choices. Then at scouts I made a present for my grandma and as soon as I got home I told my family and mom said it was time to go do a mile and a half. I didn't grumble. My family motivated me by turning on the radio and dancing and that helped me get through it faster. Mom pushed me to go faster than yesterdays time and I wanted to get more cal and fat cal than yesterday so I ended up beating my time and going 1.5 miles total. My mom was wiping my face and back and stomach with the towel because I was sweating really hard. We had fun working together----AWESOME!!! I am happy I got my mile done before Biggest Loser and I can watch from the beginning. See you tomorrow everyone out there.

I just can not say enough about how wonderful Keaton's desire is. I do have to remind him to do his mile, yet he is not grumbling and fighting it. I think he is actually wanting and realizing it is better to get it done and then feel good about the rest of the evening. I was really sore today from dancing around so much yesterday so today I just encouraged him. I kept upping his speed and I have officially become the sweat wiper offer (a job I will gladly perform to see my son try so hard). Dinner was simple this evening-fiesta lime chicken, steamed rice and sweet corn. I ran out of lettuce for our salads but was not about to go to the store just for that. Busy day with scouts early for Keaton and Taron has scouts in the evening but we managed to get snow shoveled, Taron to dentist, workout in and dinner made all before our coveted biggest loser season finale. Belle has fun just being able to dance around in my room. This may have started for Keaton, but the entire family is enjoying our time together. Is there anything better???

Thanks for the comments.

Keaton got home from school and asked to see his blog.

He was absolutely thrilled to see 3 comments. He had to tell everyone.

Keep them coming.

Love you all!!!!

Starting the Week Out Right

Mon. Dec 7

• 140 cal
• 43.9 fat cal
• 1.31 miles
• 5.2 laps
• pulse 153
• 28:30

In his words....I am proud of what I did and I am feeling better because I am doing more than a mile. I tried to make good choices eating good foods at school. Today at school I started to moan because umm, I'm like this (pointing to himself) while I was at recess on the track and I was thinking that if I can ask Miss Leo, my teacher at school if me and my friend Austin would want to run the track with me a couple times. But I didn't ask her today because I was a little bit scared of asking Austin if he wanted to do it with me. While I did my mile today, Mom turned on the music and she started to groove. It made me feel that I can get this done before 30 minutes. I like having her in there with me while I exercise. She pushes me so I can get it done and not have to do it in a longer time. I feel good today. After school I had a banana when I got home and that made me feel proud of myself for making a good choice. That's all.

I am proud of Keaton. Yesterday we had salad for lunch and he loved it. He is really wanting to do this. Today I stayed after my class and had work to do so I knew Keaton would be on his own until I got there. My fear was that he would be snacking on the wrong things while I was gone. To my surprise he only had a banana. Good choice my boy. I had wanted him to do the mile while I was gone but once I got home it was clear to me it is easier to exercise with a motivator close by. He walked/ran as I danced the the radio. It was actually really fun for all of us. Belle danced on my bed, I walked in place and danced next to the treadmill. We had a great time. I kept it up until my belly started hurting and then I sat on the bed and raised my arms. (GO ME!!) We all do what we can do right?! I love my boy. I love all my children. There was a touch of grumbling when time to workout but it was quickly quieted and he got right to it. Right now I am thinking consistent and persistent.

To any and all who read this....please leave Keaton a message. He reads this and it will be a great motivator for him. Thanks!

Our First Steps

Yesterday we went online and ordered a couple cookbooks.

1. Biggest Loser Family Cookbook on a Budget
2. Diabetes Association Cookbook
3. American Heart Association Cookbook

We plan to eat better and be more active.

Each day Keaton will comment and so will I. This is how Keaton feels today.

In his own words-Here we are, me and Mom, trying to get rid of being "big" (he said with hesitation). Two days ago I walked a mile and it took me 30 minutes. Today I did 1.25 miles in 26 minutes and 10 seconds. I didn't want to get on the treadmill and do it but the minute I got on I felt that I needed to loose some weight so I pushed myself as long as I can and I told my mom that I will go 6 miles an hour and after that I was really happy of myself of doing that mile faster than the last time. After the mile i went downstairs and I said a prayer and said thank you for helping me do that mile. I feel alot better now that I did it. That's all.

In my words-Keaton fought with me at first today about getting his mile done. I reminded him he wants to do this and it will take effort. He has a choice. He can choose to grumble and cry or he can just get in there and get it done and then have all day to play and be proud of his efforts. He really worked hard today. Twice he upped the speed to 6 mph and ran his little heart out for as long as he could. Otherwise he was at a nice brisk walk. We did start our Saturday morning out with pancakes but I only made one for each of us and no extras. One egg and no extras. For lunch I am planning a salad. As for my physical activity, I have to clean my room and complete some work for school. I love my Keaton and his efforts. Keaton asks if just a salad for lunch will be enough. OH MY BOY!!!

Why This Began

This blog is the result of a conversation between my precious 9 year old son Keaton and myself. While down in his room, after a conversation about getting him to clean his room, he got rather quiet and had a sad, lonely look on his face. This is the moment that a mother prays never comes. After much encouragement, he finally said to me, "I don't like being me."

Keaton is a beautiful, sensitive young man. His heart is big. The trial comes that his body is larger than other boys his age. As our conversation went on, through tears, he explained he doesn't like who he is. He wants a different body. This pain is real. I have felt it. I have wished these things. We have tried to make changes.

All I could think of was how our Heavenly Father loves us. He loves Keaton. But I know when we are hurting those are not always the words that make us feel better. I explained to him that God is perfect and would only make perfect things. Therefore Keaton is perfect. However, we have agency and opportunity to change who we are and how we look.

From our discussion we decided to keep daily track of our progress. I am six months pregnant and not moving around much but I can try harder to encourage and support Keaton as he makes changes in his physical activity levels. One main concern to Keaton is the mile run at school. He always is last and the entire class has to wait for him to finish. Keaton knows the kids love him anyway. One friend, Austin, after finishing his own mile, went back and ran the rest of Keaton's mile with him. He is a good friend. Still, Keaton wants to do better.

So here we are. I asked Keaton what he wanted this to be about. (Very proud of his answer.) He doesn't want it to be about getting skinny. He wants it to be about getting healthy. He wants to be healthy. One of his favorite books happens to be titled Diary of the Wimpy Kid. We took that name and tweaked it for our purpose. (I love my boy.)

This is our beginning.