Count Thy Blessings, Name Them One-by-one (and a give-away!)

My heart is really full as I post this, my 100th post for my blog. At the beginning of this year, I was down trodden, I was heart broken, I was unhappy with myself and who I had become, and I hated my body. It was a curse, something I had to fight against and fight with. It was my soul against my body, and often - the body won. The appetites and passions won out over doing what was right or good. I was sick of "trying again" and again and again to lose weight. Not having success, gaining it back, you know the game. That is so painful, and it hurts so much!! And oh does Satan love that! He loves to magnify our mistakes, our excuses, our pain, our hurt. And for whatever reason, I let him.

And then, I watched Julie & Julia. I know it seems so trivial, but that is when I decided to do a blog. And as I started planning for that, I started mapping out my goals. I had no idea what would happen. I didn't know if I could achieve my goals, but I knew I couldn't just give up. I had no idea that I would meet so many wonderful people out there. People who were and are hurting, just as I have. People I could connect with, learn from, receive support from, and could be friends with.

What I truly did not expect was the strength that I receive from posting. This has allowed me to put my thoughts and feelings on paper (so to speak) and to really put it all out there. Through this I have learned so much about myself, about why I eat, about why I choose to be weak some times, and just how strong I can be. It has been healing me from the inside, that  which has been the cause of all the overeating, binging, stuffing my feelings, and pain. Sometimes it's easy to compare my speed of weight loss to others and think, if only... If only I had done more, ate less... yada yada yada. However I really and truly feel happy with my success. I've lost just over 30lbs physically. But there is no measuring the amount of the internal baggage that I have lost. And I know that as I continue on this path, that internal weight loss will catch up with my body and then there will be no stopping me.

Last night my best friend, Liana from Vegan Ana, played in her Bell Choir concert on Temple Square. It was fantastic!! If you've never heard a bell choir, you should find one, it's quite the experience. The whole concert was a tribute to the flag, our country, and our freedom. It was AWESOME!! It made me really think about how grateful I am for this country. How unbelievably blessed I am to live here, to have a solid supportive family, spouse, and friends. To have a strong belief in God, a religion that I know to be true, and the spirit of Christ in my life. I am grateful that I know that because of Christ - repentance is a real thing, because I mess up every day, sometimes every hour. And I'm grateful to know that I can receive forgiveness and keep moving forward. That gives me such peace!

I am grateful for a loving and supportive husband! He does so much for me and treats me like a queen. I couldn't do this without him and I give him my heart gladly!

I am grateful for my body. I no longer hate it. I get frustrated with it sometimes, but I don't hate it. I recognize it as a gift from God and that part of my test here on earth is to learn how to control it. To learn how to have more faith, more love, more (dare I say it) patience - in spite of my "natural man" tendencies. I am so grateful that I have a healthy working body. This is such a gift and I don't plan to squander it any more!

I am grateful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints. I try to keep my religious thoughts more to the spiritual side, but I feel that I would be doing myself and my Father in Heaven a real disrespect to not say it. I am so grateful for all that being a member has done in my life. All that it has taught me, and allowed me to do.

I am grateful for my freedom. And to all those men and women that have given their lives so that we can enjoy that freedom. Also to those that are continuing to give their lives, time, and talents for the safety of our country. My cousin is on his 3rd or 4th tour after just re-marrying. That is sacrifice!! Thank you. Thank you to those that serve, and to their families.

I am grateful to my parents, who have given me so much. They raised me in the gospel, they taught me to be independent, and they provided so much for me. Recently I have really learned what it means to have kind loving parents (and to be one) - it makes me think of them and how they have loved me. Even when I didn't really deserve it, they still did. Thank you Mom & Dad - I love you more!!

Oh... for Willow. For her I am so grateful! She keeps me on my toes and lets me cuddle (sometimes). I love her and the joy she has brought to our home.

And last and most of all, I am grateful to my Father in Heaven. For without him, I would not have all of these wonderful things. I thank him for this beautiful earth, for the talents I have been given, for my desire to be better and do better. And for the strength he gives me everyday to keep going!

As this is my 100th post, I am doing a drawing from all the comments left. It will be a random drawing, and there is only one requirement. Leave me a comment and tell me what it is in your life that you are grateful for. Let's count our blessings!! You must leave your comment by the end of Monday, June 14th. The winner will receive a FREE blog makeover. And you can decide if you want me to design it for you, or we can work together to come up with a look that you want and hopefully, will love! Happy commenting!!