Standing Together

Today is a special day. 

Today is a huge milestone in my life. 

Today I can reflect on what has brought me to this point in my life. 

Today I am amazed. 

Today I am thankful. 

Today marks 10 years of being Mrs. Chris McKinney. 

As a young girl of only 16 years, I stood before the preacher, my family, my friends, and most importantly, my God, and I said, "I do" to Mr. Chris McKinney. I can't say that I knew what I was doing or that I even really even knew what true love was. I was young and naive. To be completely honest, I was more "in love" with the idea of being in love, getting married, and having my own home than I was "in love" with my soon to be husband. 

The first few months that followed our marriage were a true testament to my ignorance of what was expected of a godly wife. Of course my mother taught me the importance of starting my day with God, and how do chores and keep a tidy house, but being on my own, proved that I had much to learn about making those daily rituals a priority.  I wish I could say I was a fast learner, but alas, I reveled in my new found freedom and regrettably, I didn't do the things I knew I should have done.  

My cooking also left much to the imagination. Living in a small travel trailer with mom and dad didn't allow for me to obtain much cooking experience. I'm so thankful that Chris loved Hamburger Helper. We literally had Hambuger Helper four times a week. :O I'm also sure that's why he doesn't love it now. 

Chris and I had the ups and downs that I'm sure every newlywed couple has. We made hasty decisions, we said words in anger that should never had been said. We fought over things that looking back at now, seem so frivolous. We did learn from those earlier mistakes and grew older, and dare I say, wiser...? 

Moving forward a few years...

We had tried to have a baby for a couple years with no success. I made an appointment and found out I have poly-cystic ovarian syndrome. Getting pregnant was going to be very difficult for us. Even with the help of fertility drugs. We were still young and seen plenty of time ahead for things to fall into place like we wanted it too. 

Several more years passed by and we still hadn't had any luck in getting pregnant. It got harder on me each time I heard of a friend, or especially a younger relative getting pregnant. It wasn't a physical battle for me. It was a mental battle. I felt as though I was a huge failure at the one thing God had actually made me (as a woman) to do. I became depressed, hurt, and bitter at God. 

Then came the venamous thoughts of, "Chris wishes he had married some else," and "Chris doesn't love me anymore." I became so enslaved to these degrading thoughts that I started to believe that our marriage was a mistake. I started pulling away from my husband although he assured me over and over that he loved me no matter what our present conditions. I was so blinded by satan, and my own emotions, that I wouldn't/couldn't hear him. 

I fell into the deepest, darkest, and most scary place I have ever been. All while Chris tried to love and nurture me, I pulled farther into myself and darkness. I will never forget that night of despair when I wanted to end it all. Chris didn't tell me that it would be okay. He didn't tell me things would work out. He didn't try to smooth things over. He just pulled me into his arms with tears streaming down his face, and told me that nothing I did would make him stop loving me. It was that night and the days following that I realized the depths of true love. 

In my lowest of lows Chris was there for me with nothing but love to offer. He was there to guide me back to the cross and the truth when I had failed to look to Jesus. 

With God's help, much prayer, and a lot of work and patience, we are stronger and more in love than we've ever been. I cannot thank God enough for giving me Chris as my life partner. God knew exactly what I would need to make it through this life. 

We may not have the answers to all our questions, but we are committed to God and each other for the rest of our days. And with God as the center of our marriage, we can make it. 

"Together we stand, divided we fall."

If time stands and we are here for another 10 years, I have no doubt that Chris and I will still be standing together. 

Love y'all! 

Lacey

 

Healthy foods

Here's a quick post of some of my healthy foods. 

Eggs & Tomatoes. I love having chickens and being able to gather fresh eggs. 

Black bean soup. This was a Daniel plan recipe that aunt Sharon sent me. I loved it! 

Green smoothie. I was worried it would taste bad, but it was great! I used my juicer to juice some carrots then used the carrot juice to blend up spinach, an orange, & frozen peaches. :))))

Ok..this it totally random, but I woke up (I guess) with a weird bruise on the back of my neck. When Chris came home from work he saw it and was like, "Lacey, What in the world is on your neck?" I don't make a habit of looking at my neck on a daily basis so I'm not sure how I got it. Very weird indeed! 

Well y'all, I shall post when I have more to say. Lol!

Lacey

Ready, Set, GOOOOOOOO!

Just a quick post to let y'all know that I will be starting the 40 day challenge tomorrow. Can't wait to get started. :)

Day #10

Whoooooot I made it! I made it I made it!!! :))))))) I'm doing the happy dance! 

Wow! I am so glad that is made it all the way to day #10 without any major mishaps. I can really tell a BIG difference in how I feel. I'm not sluggish, weak, or excessively tired. My body feels so good!  I've also not had any headaches since day #5. I'm not as beat down after working either. Anddddd.......I lost 13 lbs.!!!!!!!!! Yayayayay!  

Just because I've reached day #10 doesn't mean I'm done. No way! It just means I'm going to take a little break from blogging (not a break from eating healthy) for our Church meeting and be ready to come back strong and do the 40 day plan. :) 

At around 3 am this morning my brother and his family got here. I decided to get up and go kidnap the kids. :) I went over and got them and they came to our house and spent the night with us. It was after 4 am when we all settled back down to sleep so we all slept in a little this morning.  

This morning I had one little peep eat breakfast with me. 

We enjoyed our eggs and fruit. 

Kari was still snoozing so she wasn't able to join our feast. 

I had school today so I ran off to school and then came back and took them to run errands with me. They are a hoot. Shopping with them is never dull. ;) 

Lunch was just a healthy snack here and there. 

For supper we had pizza. Yes, pizza! But not the bad-for-you-kind. 

Look at this beauty! It was Delish!!! I will have to post a recipe later. It's all veggies, chia seeds, and almond flour. 

I figured I better go ahead and get my post done before Church. I probably won't have time afterwards. 

Hope y'all have a great weekend. If you aren't doing anything and want to come to Church, you are more than welcome! :) We would love to see your face in the crowd! 

Till next week,

Lacey

Day #9

I can't believe I am on day 9!!! Tomorrow is the last day of this round. :))) I am sooo happy! And proud of myself. I have really been learning self control. 

So today I got up and fixed my big breakfast. 

Yep! I ate a salmon salad at 3:30am!!! And it was delish!!!! 

My new infuser. I'm in love! I tried strawberries, blueberries, and oranges in it today. It was great! 

I snacked on grapes at work. 

Then I came home and jumped into school work. I literally worked on school for 6hrs! My brain (and the rest if me) is fried!!! 

So I kinda skipped lunch. 

Chris was wonderful enough to grill us some fish. 

I ate some grilled fish and about 10 natural potato chips. 

This has been the longest 10 days of my life. Lol!!! 

I will post more tomorrow. :) 

Night y'all,

Lacey

Day #8

Oh my! It's so late! Mom and I shopped till we dropped. Literally! We packed as much into our day and my little car as we could! Literally. 

Lol! Seriously look at this! We had so much fun! I love having days like this with my momma. :))))) 

Here's a picture recap of my food today. 

Breakfast! Delish! 

Snack. Yummy!

My lunch. Drab. 

Mom's lunch. Wow factor!

She loves getting all my foods I can't have. :) 

Treat! Nonfat, sugar free, decaf iced coffee. So tasty to this girl! 

I ran out if time for supper, but honestly I wasn't hungry. I will get up in the morning and have a big breakfast. If I can get up. I'm usually in the bed at 8pm on a work night. I'm wayyyyy past that! . :( 

Goodnight y'all! 

Lacey 

Day #7

What a day!!!

Got up this morning at 3:30 am and fixed myself some warm lemon water and a healthy breakfast. I whipped up two eggs and some spinach and scrambled them together. A dash a of pepper, a BIG handful of little tomatoes and I was set! 

Off to work I went. Working at a fast food restaurant is hard. Not only do you leave all greasy, but you are on your feet all day, and get to deal with some pretty hateful people. The last couple days I worked, my feet and back killed me. Chris ran to walmart last night and got me some inserts that actually helped a little. My back didn't hurt today and my feet weren't as bad as usual. 

The other bad thing about working around food is well, working around food. ;) All the smells of bacon, biscuits, hashrounds, onion rings, chicken, burgers, and every other food smell you can think of. These last few days haven't been bad at all! This is the first diet plan that I have followed where I wasn't craving all those foods. My body is literally readjusting to smells and tastes. I carve more veggies, I find fruit and nuts to be sweet tasting. Thank The Lord for this! I'm one who diets a few days and then dives headlfirst into a gallon of ice cream. This time I'm enjoying my healthy ways. :) 

So back to today, I came home (my mom is here for the week) and mom needed us to go run some errands. So I grabbed some broccoli and ate it. Then I whipped up some almond milk, spinach, and berries in the blender and drank it. I was in such a hurry that I didn't get pics. Sorry. 

Mom and I ran around town for hours! We shopped and shopped. :) I love having her here to do stuff with. And she is sooooo glad to be with me too! ;) Even when I'm only going on 4 & 1/2 hrs of sleep. It usually just makes it all the more interesting. 

After we got home I started supper. We had black bean burgers, steamed asparagus, and avocado. It was DEELISH! (To me anyways!) 

For dessert we tried a new fruit. It's called "Horned Mellon." The best way to describe it would be to call it "natural jello." I liked it. Chris and mom didn't care to much for it. We had to look up online how to eat it. Lol! What would I do without google?! 

I also made nut butter!!!! I love it! It's so fresh tasting. Then I tried making my own Nutella. Except mine is all natural. It is amazing!!!! I felt like I usually do when I lick the brownie batter.  I wanted to stick my tongue in the bowl and lick all the sides. ;) (and I did!) 

Nut butter

My Nutella. 

Well folks, it has been a full day. Tomorrow holds more of the same so I'm gonna catch some zzzzz's and dreams. :) 

Night y'all,

Lacey 

Day #6

Hi y'all. Just gonna post real quick. We went to Church in London with mom and dad so it's way past my bedtime for a work day tomorrow. 

For Breakfast I had 3 eggs and a handful of blueberries. I'm upping my protien just a little because I'm gonna start exercising this week. Y'all just don't even realize how good I feel! It's awesome. :) 

After Church our gang decided they wanted to eat at Cheddar's. I had the tilapia without the rice, steamed broccoli, and a side salad with just lemon juice for the dressing. It filled me up good! 

I really didn't have supper, but I snacked on little tomatoes, grapes, almonds, and an orange. 

I'm also getting ready to make nut butter tomorrow. I'm super excited!!!! 

Here's my little nut station. My almonds and hazelnuts are in the dehydrator. 

Well folks, 3 am comes very early so I'm gonna call it a night. Hope you've all had a good weekend! I sure have. :))) 

Luv ya!

Lacey 

Day #5

I'm halfway there!!! Day #10 is in sight now! 

I'm gonna make this post quick since it's almost midnight. :0

Today was wonderful! I felt so good, energetic, and skinny! I usually always feel so bloated from overeating. Today was just a good day. 

I just love Saturdays. Especially rainy ones. I slept in and it was so wonderful! :) 

I got up and had my warm lemon water. I had actually slept through a normal persons breakfast time so I rambled around the house till lunch time. For lunch I had a plate of veggies and fruit. 

Chris and I went to a birthday for one of my coworker's daughter. She had assorted fruit along with the usual pizza, chips, and cake.  I ate some fruit and stopped there. None of that other stuff for this lady! 

After the party, Chris and I went to Lexington do a little shopping. We ended up at the whole food market and got a few groceries. We decided to eat there. He got a chicken wrap. I had a veggie burger, sesame kale, and some kind of bean/veggie mix. It was really good. 

Sorry for the blurry picture. We were in the car and it didn't take very good. 

I love the whole food market! 

So for my big news for day #5......I have lost 10lbs!!!!!!! Wow! I'm impressed and excited to see even more results. 

Y'all have a blessed Sunday tomorrow! (Like in 3 mins.) ;) 

Luv ya!

Lacey

Day #4

Hello weekend!!! I am so glad it's FRIDAY! This has been a very difficult week, but things are getting better. I had more energy today than any other days so far since starting the plan. It's a good thing to because work was pretty busy! 

This morning I started out with my usual warm lemon water. It has really been helping my throat. I recommend it to anyone. It just tastes so good and fresh. 

Since today was a work day I had to get up at 3:30 am and fix breakfast. I fixed myself 2 eggs, an avocado, and a banana. 

After looking for my keys for forever and running a little late, I ran off to work with a orange and a lemon in my little baggy. I had the orange for a snack and used the lemon to flavor my water. I drank so much water today. I'm really proud of myself. I went 4 days with only drinking water. :)))) 

Well by the time noon rolled around I had made it home from work and I was pooped! I did NOT feel like cooking anything to eat. Honestly, if there had of been anything healthy or unhealthy in the cabinets I probably would have grabbed whatever and went to town on it. I'm now thankful that I cleaned all the junk out of the cupboards at the first of the week. 

So I grabbed 3 carrots out of the fridge, dipped them in some hummus, and chomped like a rabbit. 

Mary B, I can only imagine how much I sounded like you when you crunch your ice! ;) 

Then I rested! And rested a little more. Ahhhh. Peace. Quiet. Zzzzzzz. 

Then the hubs came home. 

Our weekends has always consisted of eating out (several times) and having date nights. My husband's biggest concern about The Daniel Plan was not getting to go out to eat anymore. So I made a compromise and we went out to eat for supper. Gotta keep the man of the house happy don't ya know. 

And I cheated. :( 

I ate a roll! An O Charley's roll! The holy grail of rolls!!! It was so fresh and soft and buttery!!! 

But,

I only ate one!!! What!!! Talk about self control! I'm really learning! 

And then I ate a scrumptious salad with no dressing. :))) 

I love squeezing fresh lemon or lime juice on my salad rather than drenching it in dressing. You really won't believe the taste difference. I can actually taste the different fruit/veggie flavors. Yummmmmy! 

The husband convinced me that we could go out and still eat healthy. I did pretty good. I was proud of myself. And as far as the hubs. Well.....

Doesn't he look a little shameful of his burger and fries??? Lol! Actually I am really proud of him. All week he has eaten what I cooked for supper with no (hardly any) complaints. :) 

And I licked my platter clean! :) 

I hope y'all have a great weekend! 

Luv ya!

Lacey

Day #3

Today I am thinking, "Can I make it 7 more days?!" Honestly, I'm not sure. My sugar craving is at all time high!!! I even had a dream last night that I was hiding in a closet eating a whole jelly roll. Jelly rolls are not even my thing, but I woke thinking how good one would taste. Just looking at all my green foods makes me tremor inside a little. Yet I must push through! 

This morning I woke up with a slight headache and a sore throat, but I really think these symptoms are coming from the weather rather than the diet. I'm so ready for Spring to be here! I'm ready to get out and enjoy some sunshine for a change. 

I started my day with my warm lemon water (it really helped my throat feel better) and studying for a biology exam. Since I had class today and I was a little tired of eggs, I opted for a green smoothie for breakfast. I used unsweetened almond milk and mixed in 2 cups of assorted greens, and a cup of blueberries. I mixed it all up in the blender and enjoyed a quick healthy breakfast.

I also snacked on a banana. 

For lunch I had a HUGE salad! I mean HUGE!!! It had all kinds of mixed greens, spinach, broccoli, snap peas, carrots, chicken, and fresh blueberries. Mmmm! So good. I really piled it high. 

For a snack I tried my homemade hummus. It's not nearly as tasty as store bought, but for my first time making it I thought it was pretty good. I have some new recipes I'm also going to try. They are flavored so I think I will like them better than this plain version. 

Now for supper, y'all may puke a little just looking at it. My sweet aunt Sharon (she has The Daniel Plan cookbook) sent me some recipes out of the book last night. I decided to try the creamed asparagus soup tonight. I tweaked it just a little to add more flavor. It really wasn't too awful. If you ask Chris you will probably get a different answer. ;) I may be turning green. Literally. 

Whatcha think? Would you eat it? 

I also learnt a very valuable lesson.....DO NOT put boiling hot liquids in a blender and try to blend!!! I have the burns on my arm, hand, & belly to prove this. The whole top of my blender blew off and splattered me and half of my kitchen in boiling hot green gunk. :0 Lesson learnt! 

For some good news, I received my kitchen aid food processor today. I can't wait to get in there and make some homemade nut butter!!! 

Well tonight is Church night so I need to go get my praise on! 

Luv y'all!

Lacey

Day #2

Well I have survived another day! :) Hallelujah!!! Toady was a little different because I got into work between 4:15 and 4:30 am. Soooooo I had to get up at 3:15 am to be able to fix myself a healthy breakfast, get a shower, and get ready for work. 

This morning I started off with my warm lemon water. I only had about 1/4 of a lemon in it instead of 1/2, and it was really good! Then I fixed up two eggs with chopped spinach mixed up in them. Next I whipped up some frozen raspberries and unsweetened almond milk in the blender. Pretty tasty! 

I took a banana to work with me so I would have a healthy snack to munch on. By the time 11:00 am rolled around I was tired and HUNGRY!!! I finished out my work day and headed home. I usually get off work any time between 11:30 am and noon. Once I got home I immediately began lunch prep! I mean I was famished! 

For lunch I had cooked chicken breast shredded up and mixed in with1 avocado and a handful of tomatoes and sprinkled with basil. 

I snacked in some fresh strawberries and took a little nap. 

For supper we had cooked chicken breast with sautéed onions and red bell peppers. They were so tasty! I also cooked an artichoke for the first time. I streamed it for 40 mins and we ate the leaves for supper. I took the artichoke heart mixed it with some chick peas and seasonings and made some homemade hummus for tomorrow. I'm anxious to see how it taste after being chilled overnight. 

I think I will send Chris to the store to get some oranges. I need a snack!!! ;) 

Day #2 is coming to an end. Whoot! I have felt better today. No headache. No nausea. More energy. :)))) Chris is wanting me to come out and play some basketball with him and I think I will do just that. Stay tuned for more tomorrow. 

Luv y'all!

Lacey

Day #1

Ohmy! I will just be completely honest and tell you that right now I am craving ice cream, brownies, pasta, sauces, and pretty much everything that isn't a fruit or vegetable. ;) 

I have a slight headache which I assume is from having no caffeine today, but it is bearable. I also am lacking in the energy department. I have zilch...nanda...none at all! I assume that is from not having any sugar/carbs today. This too shall pass!!! Hopefully sooner rather than later. 

So I started this morning with a cup of hot lemon water. There are so many health benefits gained from drinking warm lemon water. It aids in the digestive system. It is loaded with vitamin C. It helps boost the immune system. And many more! 

It wasn't too terrible to drink, but it will take some getting used to. I used half of a lemon and squeezed it into my cup of warm water. 

Next I was ready for breakfast. I had 2 eggs (from my chickens), an avocado, and 2 strawberries. This very different from my usual pop tart and coffee or sugary cereal. 

For lunch I had a chicken breast, tomatoes, and mashed carrots. Then for a snack I ate blueberries and a spoonful of organic nut butter. 

For supper I fixed lean beef patties and an all green salad with homemade dressing. I puckered a little bit when I tasted my dressing. (It is mostly apple cider vinegar and fresh lemon juice.)

My husband has already abandoned ship on me. Well, not totally, but he said he just couldn't eat as extreme as I am. He still wants to eat healthy, but he needs his ranch dressing! ;)  I told him I didn't care at all. As long as he is making more healthy choices than before, that's progress. 

I admit that I am glad Day #1 is almost over. It has been very challenging, but I am determined to take it a day at a time. Tomorrow is a work day so I'm a little anxious as how I am going to make this work at work. Stay with me and I will keep you updated. :) 

Luv y'all, 

Lacey

The Daniel Plan

I know I haven't blogged in like forever! Life gets busy and I end up on the ride of my life and forget to write it all down.

We had a great Christmas and New Year. Then things got hectic...back to school, back to work, Church stuff going on and lots of crazy in our lives. 😉

With the New Year came those "ideas" that this year would be my healthy year. I was gonna get healthy, loose weight, and feel better. Well, before I knew it, it was March and I had yet to anything different. Feeling disgusted with myself, I went in search of biblical plans for getting healthy rather than secular. Now I'm not dissing any plans or programs, but for me those others just weren't getting to me like I needed them to and I would never stick to them. I needed something with a scripture basis. 

After much prayer and research I have found a plan that I am going to try. It's called "The Daniel Plan." It's co-written by a pastor from California. This plan really focuses on God's plan for us Spiritually and Physically. I've not read the whole book yet, but so far I'm loving what I'm reading. It's a very thought provoking and interesting book. 

I'm an emotional eater. I use food to comfort me, I use food to celebrate anything and everything, and I use food fill voids. I guess I use food for just about everything except "real nutrition." It's been the same way with exercising. I blame my unwillingness to do anything on everything I can. In truth, I've just become lazy. 

Tomorrow my husband and I will be starting with the 10 day challenge. I will be posting our progress, victories, and failures to help keep me accountable. Please follow along with us. We will need all the encouragement we can get. 😀 

Luv y'all!

Lacey