Dear God,
Sometimes the Enemy grabs hold of me and takes over me. When that happens I am thrown into fear, the past and a darkness the surrounds me.
God please give me the strength to turn from the Enemy and turn to you instead during these times. There is so much pain and resentment built up inside me, help me let go of it all and give it to You.
Please give me strength to show those who I have hurt that I am sorry and please give me strength to forgive those who have hurt me.
The darkness is not where I want to live, please take me to the light.
In Jesus name I pray
Amen
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Monthly challenge for August!
Oh yes, it is that time again.. a MONTHLY challenge to get you up and moving and pushing forward!
10 reverse lunges (each leg)
10 flying lunges
15 plies squats
5 - 30 second planks
20 leg lifts
20 hip up reverse crunches
30 bicycle crunches
20 weighted side bends (each side)
You can Google each one of these to see how the movement is done. Do each of these movements once a day for 30 days!
No matter how you feel...
Get up
Dress up
Show up
And NEVER give up!
10 reverse lunges (each leg)
10 flying lunges
15 plies squats
5 - 30 second planks
20 leg lifts
20 hip up reverse crunches
30 bicycle crunches
20 weighted side bends (each side)
You can Google each one of these to see how the movement is done. Do each of these movements once a day for 30 days!
No matter how you feel...
Get up
Dress up
Show up
And NEVER give up!
P.E. stands for "Personal Exploitation'?
Growing up, I was always on the chunky side.
Mind you--I was not "fat" or overweight, but I always carried a few extra pounds and had the desire to be thinner. Not so much skinny. but in shape.
The acronym "P.E." to me had always been a four letter word. I HATED P.E. in every grade of school that I attended.
In grade school, it was fingers being ran over by stupid square boards with wheels attached to them. It was about climbing some damn ass stupid rope to see if you could get to the top in front of all your classmates (which, of course, I could not). And, it was about these silly stations that involved you going around the gym in some crazy ass time limit and see how many of the motions you could do at each station only to then have to report your results, so they could be recorded with the rest of the class and you could have proper, near-instant humiliation. No matter how young I was, it was always the same for me... "You want me to do what?" and "What is the purpose of this?"
In junior high, or what we now call middle school, it was all about dressing down, who was NOT taking showers in the locker room, and running. P.E. also became known as "gym". I swear my gym teacher was a marathon runner so she would use class time to train for her runs and make us run too. At the time I attended a school called Ickes Jr. High (no that is not a typo that was the name of the school). Ickes had this large grassy area behind the school, and our gym teacher would have us doing laps out there. Mind you, being Milwaukie, there was no track. It was a typical grass and weed mixture, and it was full of holes, rocks and bumps. My ankles would twist and turn and that gym teacher did not care if it was 50 degrees and raining, or one degree shy of instant heat stroke. We were running. Luckily, there was also a small, nondescript building out in that field and it quickly became my safe haven. I would run the distance required to get to that location (considerably less than the directed half-marathon by teach), and then I would stand behind the building and wait. I was simply waiting for the person that I had picked out from the crowd of half marathon runners to pass me the number of times required for laps that day. Once I saw that target I would happily jump back into place and make my way in.
I had some pretty remarkable timed-runs for a girl that hated gym.
By time I hit 17 and got married, yes I was married at 17 but that is the subject for another blog, the weight sort of fell off
of me with no real work on my part. I was a senior in high school, and
was working at a Safeway as a checker. My husband at the time was
starting his own company, and I was helping him by answering the phones
and doing the accounts receivables. I never had stepped foot in a gym,
let alone actually lift weights.
Since I had successfully avoided P.E. all throughout high school, one of my senior year requirements was in fact P.E. I am sure in my mind I was hoping, maybe even expecting, my counselor to forget and let me graduate without subjecting me to this hell.
He did not.
So rather than being bored and facing the fact that I might have to run around the high school track (or at a minimum find another nondescript building to hide behind), I chose to take weight lifting in high school.
My weight lifting teacher was short and stocky, and I swear he was always on something (and I don't mean V-8). For the most part, the weight lifting teachers had a reputation of being known as the "meat heads." So I assumed going into this class if I just muddled around the room with my cute smile on he would leave me alone and give me a passing grade.
When I think of my weight lifting teacher back then this commercial always comes to mind:
http://youtu.be/q7gzmoqmL7g
Upon my first arrival into the weight lifting room, I was overwhelmed with the smell of stinky, teenage boys. There were classmates everywhere lifting and grunting and throwing things down and high fiving each other. I literally felt my breast shrinking as I walked into that room due to the testosterone. Okay, not really--but you get my point. As it turned out, my weight lifting teacher was more than a meat head. He was interested in goals and helping me understand what my goals were. At the time of course it was only to graduate and get the heck out of there. But as the weeks passed he helped introduce me into fitness and setting goals for myself.
I can't really say that he had a huge impact on my life, since it took me MANY years to find my way back into a gym. But looking back on it now, I realized what an opportunity I wasted during that time of my life. I was young, I had energy, I had no time restrictions, no kids and I really could have done something more with my fitness, if only I would have applied myself.
But I do not live in regret.
I think it's important to be able to look back on our past at any moment of time that we choose and see what lesson is there to be learned. I heard a quote this last week from a very inspirational woman that I learned about, Robin Roberts. She said:
"The tragedy is not so much the experience that your having. The tragedy is we don't take the time to understand the meaning and the purpose of what we are going through." -Robin Roberts
We have so much to learn from the experiences we are having, and we have so much to learn from the experience we have had. I think it's a good idea to recall some moments in our lives, good or bad, and really meditate on what the lesson is for that time. I think it is better to be open to understanding and change then just be closed down and say that is the past let it go. I don't think it's ever too late to change who you are if you are changing to improve yourself. Life is a book and the chapters are up to us to write.
I would like to see my next chapter be better than the one before it.
Make it a great day!
~Mellie
Mind you--I was not "fat" or overweight, but I always carried a few extra pounds and had the desire to be thinner. Not so much skinny. but in shape.
The acronym "P.E." to me had always been a four letter word. I HATED P.E. in every grade of school that I attended.
In grade school, it was fingers being ran over by stupid square boards with wheels attached to them. It was about climbing some damn ass stupid rope to see if you could get to the top in front of all your classmates (which, of course, I could not). And, it was about these silly stations that involved you going around the gym in some crazy ass time limit and see how many of the motions you could do at each station only to then have to report your results, so they could be recorded with the rest of the class and you could have proper, near-instant humiliation. No matter how young I was, it was always the same for me... "You want me to do what?" and "What is the purpose of this?"
In junior high, or what we now call middle school, it was all about dressing down, who was NOT taking showers in the locker room, and running. P.E. also became known as "gym". I swear my gym teacher was a marathon runner so she would use class time to train for her runs and make us run too. At the time I attended a school called Ickes Jr. High (no that is not a typo that was the name of the school). Ickes had this large grassy area behind the school, and our gym teacher would have us doing laps out there. Mind you, being Milwaukie, there was no track. It was a typical grass and weed mixture, and it was full of holes, rocks and bumps. My ankles would twist and turn and that gym teacher did not care if it was 50 degrees and raining, or one degree shy of instant heat stroke. We were running. Luckily, there was also a small, nondescript building out in that field and it quickly became my safe haven. I would run the distance required to get to that location (considerably less than the directed half-marathon by teach), and then I would stand behind the building and wait. I was simply waiting for the person that I had picked out from the crowd of half marathon runners to pass me the number of times required for laps that day. Once I saw that target I would happily jump back into place and make my way in.
I had some pretty remarkable timed-runs for a girl that hated gym.
By time I hit 17 and got married, yes I was married at 17 but that is the subject for another blog
Since I had successfully avoided P.E. all throughout high school, one of my senior year requirements was in fact P.E. I am sure in my mind I was hoping, maybe even expecting, my counselor to forget and let me graduate without subjecting me to this hell.
He did not.
So rather than being bored and facing the fact that I might have to run around the high school track (or at a minimum find another nondescript building to hide behind), I chose to take weight lifting in high school.
My weight lifting teacher was short and stocky, and I swear he was always on something (and I don't mean V-8). For the most part, the weight lifting teachers had a reputation of being known as the "meat heads." So I assumed going into this class if I just muddled around the room with my cute smile on he would leave me alone and give me a passing grade.
When I think of my weight lifting teacher back then this commercial always comes to mind:
http://youtu.be/q7gzmoqmL7g
Upon my first arrival into the weight lifting room, I was overwhelmed with the smell of stinky, teenage boys. There were classmates everywhere lifting and grunting and throwing things down and high fiving each other. I literally felt my breast shrinking as I walked into that room due to the testosterone. Okay, not really--but you get my point. As it turned out, my weight lifting teacher was more than a meat head. He was interested in goals and helping me understand what my goals were. At the time of course it was only to graduate and get the heck out of there. But as the weeks passed he helped introduce me into fitness and setting goals for myself.
I can't really say that he had a huge impact on my life, since it took me MANY years to find my way back into a gym. But looking back on it now, I realized what an opportunity I wasted during that time of my life. I was young, I had energy, I had no time restrictions, no kids and I really could have done something more with my fitness, if only I would have applied myself.
But I do not live in regret.
I think it's important to be able to look back on our past at any moment of time that we choose and see what lesson is there to be learned. I heard a quote this last week from a very inspirational woman that I learned about, Robin Roberts. She said:
"The tragedy is not so much the experience that your having. The tragedy is we don't take the time to understand the meaning and the purpose of what we are going through." -Robin Roberts
We have so much to learn from the experiences we are having, and we have so much to learn from the experience we have had. I think it's a good idea to recall some moments in our lives, good or bad, and really meditate on what the lesson is for that time. I think it is better to be open to understanding and change then just be closed down and say that is the past let it go. I don't think it's ever too late to change who you are if you are changing to improve yourself. Life is a book and the chapters are up to us to write.
I would like to see my next chapter be better than the one before it.
Make it a great day!
~Mellie
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
I am......
FINALLY!!!!!!! A card that I can agree with and not think anything negative about myself... woot woot, progress!!!! (smile)
Yes, yes, yes.. I am.... open!!!!
Too MANY things in my life. I am open to lessons in life, help, encouragement, constructive criticism, hard work, learning new things. I am open to laughter, tears, healing, to new friends, to old friends, to helping people; to family, love, new beginnings, closing old chapters, counseling, new adventures, hearing people, learning new things or new ways to do something. I am open to a better relationship with my God, and to understanding myself and the impact I have on others.
Yes, I am a very open person.
I don't think I have always been this way, however. When I was first married to Joseph, I had been living a single life for almost ten years. Sure, I had dated but never got close to marriage. So when Joseph and I married I had been living MY way only having to really worry about myself and my two boys. Getting into a new partnership and marriage was a struggle for me, at first, because I was not open. Sure, I was open for HIM to change to my way of living, but was not at first open to accepting his way of life. After all, he had not been married before, he had no kids at the time so in my mind, I had all the answers. (Divorced twice before, but I had the answers???? That made me laugh out loud when I typed that!!!).
But as our time progressed together and we both grew, I was able to not only allow him into my world, I allowed his thoughts too just as he did with my thoughts and ideas. I would say this is really when I began to learn to be open as a person. Being open to me does not mean you conform to the way a person wants you to be, it just means allowing yourself to see things from another point of view. To me, it means being open to seeing yourself and being able to humbly change who you are for the better. Joseph really helped shape the woman I am today in this area, and many others, because we were able to allow each other to freely share our own life experiences and then together we would grow over any situation. Growing within yourself and with your partner is one of the best things I think people can do.
I have a friend who was sharing a situation with me about her mother and the strained relationship she has with her. The mother has taken a new interest in my friend's life, and my friend is not too sure how to handle it or how to feel about it. When I listened to her thoughts my response to her was simply "You have to do what is right for you and your family and if it feels good then build a new relationship with her, if it doesn't then don't force it." But it all comes down to being open. My friend has to decide if she is open to idea of trying to build a new relationship between her and her mother, but that is only something she can choose.
Recently, I struggled with my faith and my relationship with my God. I felt abandoned by Him and felt as if He turned his back on me. I began reading a book called The Healing Choice by Brenda Stoeeker and Susan Allen. The book discusses a woman who, for more dramatic reasons, felt the same way about her relationship with God as I did, but describes how she was able to be open to God and the struggles in her life and learn from them as well as find herself even more closer with her God.
I like the book because it reminds me how in certain areas of my life, due to reasons out of my control, I closed down to a few things, and was not my normal self. One of the things I became closed to was my relationship with my God. But this book helps me understand and gives ideas on how to heal those trials and tribulations, allowing me to continue to be the open person I am in my life.
Someone recently told me that "People at our age do not change. Who we are today, is really who are going to continue to be, good or bad." I don't buy into this theory. I think we all have the OPPORTUNITY to grow, learn and change every single day that we breath. It comes down to wanting and making the choice to grow. I go to bed at night and when I wake up, I am not the same Mellie that went to bed the night before. Something is always changing about me, and I am always looking on how I can improve myself both physically and mentally.
So yes, I am a very open person and this card made me smile when I pulled it from the little bag on my desk. I hope that in my life I can teach my children, family and friends that they too can be open to anything and everything and we do not have to just sit by and tell ourselves.. "Well, this is who I am. No reason to change now." Change is good and change brings new life to everything. I will continue to be an open person, and I hope if you are struggling with this you can finds new ways to be open too!
~Mellie
http://youtu.be/_aAA9-edO3I?list=FLy2WfZtoIuhpkYv_wWqRhpQ
Dear God-3
Dear God,
I just wanted to take a moment to apologize. I am sorry for falling into the trap of the enemy and thinking you left me. Of course that is what the enemy wants me to think because it does not want me to win in my life and in my next life in Your Kingdom.
It has taken me a few weeks to understand that where I am today is exactly where I am suppose to be and the journey, regardless if it was intentional or not, has brought me to today and the lessons I have learned about myself along the way are good.
I have had many mistakes that I have made but with each of them I have been open to understand them, ask for forgiveness from those who I made the mistakes against and learn. But most of all I am learning that You did not turn you back on me, You have simply been waiting for me to get out of my own way.
Things are not perfect, but they sure look brighter than they use to and the choices I am making TODAY feel right.
Thank you for keeping me safe, keeping my family safe and for allowing me to be an open and forgiving person. I hope to continue to do a better job at being a better person and growing my relationships with others but most importantly You.
In Jesus Name I pray.
Amen
I just wanted to take a moment to apologize. I am sorry for falling into the trap of the enemy and thinking you left me. Of course that is what the enemy wants me to think because it does not want me to win in my life and in my next life in Your Kingdom.
It has taken me a few weeks to understand that where I am today is exactly where I am suppose to be and the journey, regardless if it was intentional or not, has brought me to today and the lessons I have learned about myself along the way are good.
I have had many mistakes that I have made but with each of them I have been open to understand them, ask for forgiveness from those who I made the mistakes against and learn. But most of all I am learning that You did not turn you back on me, You have simply been waiting for me to get out of my own way.
Things are not perfect, but they sure look brighter than they use to and the choices I am making TODAY feel right.
Thank you for keeping me safe, keeping my family safe and for allowing me to be an open and forgiving person. I hope to continue to do a better job at being a better person and growing my relationships with others but most importantly You.
In Jesus Name I pray.
Amen
Monday, July 28, 2014
I am....
When I pulled this card today I laughed out loud as if someone had told me a silly joke. Then I instantly went to Google to look up the definition for Serene.
https://www.google.com/search?q=DEFINITION+OF+SERENE&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&channel=sb
se·rene
səˈrēn/
adjective: serene; comparative adjective: serener; superlative adjective: serenest; adjective: Serene
1.
calm, peaceful, and untroubled; tranquil.
Yep, just as I had thought..... this was and is NOT me! Let me explain.
I do not mean this in a negative way but, just as described above, serene means to me being calm, peaceful, and tranquil. I am a VERY high energy, driven and motivated person so being "calm and peaceful" is not really how I would define myself unless.... I am sleeping. Even THEN, I am restless and constantly moving!!!
As I have looked at this card over and over again on my desk while working this morning, it becomes more and more humorous to me. As I reflect on my daily life, I am constantly pressed for time; pushing to get things done and running around. Even when working at my desk, I am dialing as fast as I can to get the next person on the phone. Nothing is really peaceful about my days.
However, I told myself to think outside the box and think about peaceful moments.
Weekend trips out of town are peaceful to me, and I find myself very calm during them. I love going to Seattle and staying in a nice hotel with no agenda at all. Laying by a pool while my kids play with their dad is peaceful and calm for me. Going on drives and listening to music is very calming for me. Day trips to anywhere are calming for me... if I do not have the kids with me. My new found love of hiking can be serene for me. This weekend I sat and read a book on my deck while I BBQ dinner for my family. THAT was peaceful to me.
I think as time and life get busy, we tend to always be on the move and never really take moments to ourselves to be peaceful. With this comes the mindset that we "are always busy" or in this case today that I am not a serene person, when in reality I really do have serene moments in my blessed life. I just forget about them because the overall focus is what needs or should be getting done.
The acknowledgment of those past serene moments for me not only makes me grateful for them, it makes me excited to have more of them and find ways to incorporate serene moments in my day or at least a few times a week going forward. Life is short, I forget sometimes to look around and appreciate the beauty of it all.
YES! I am...... serene.
~Mellie
Dear God-2
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth,
As it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth,
As it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
The power, and the glory,
For ever and ever.
Amen.
Dear God,
Thank you for my children, all of them. Thank you for helping me lead them on a path that will seek You and know Your kindness, mercy, lessons and love.
This weekend my two little kids asked if we could start praying again. It has been a long time since the three little kids and I have sat down at night and read the bible let alone said our prayers. I know they need this and I need this too.
Thank you for speaking through my children and reminding me that I must get right with You and what I am experiencing in life right now and the way I handle it is an example to my kids even if I do not think they are watching.
Thank you for the lessons over this weekend, thank you for the forgiveness You have given me and thank You for the love.
In Jesus name I pray
Amen
Sunday, July 27, 2014
Menu Week One Monday-Sunday
I blogged recently that I was going to change my diet to eat not only better, which I do most of the time, but to eat to help fight the disease I have, Multiple sclerosis. Here is my first week of food that I will be eating.
Food preparation is the key to any lifestyle changes that you want to make. If your goal is to lose weight, gain weight, eat better or whatever it is - Preparation is the key!
My food preparation day, and the day I recommend to all the people I help, is Sunday. I determine what my caloric intake for the week is going to be at this time. I have a good understanding of what my caloric burn is each week by how many times I go to the gym, so the intake is based off of that. My goal each week is to hit a caloric deficit (If I am trying to lose weight) each day and week. I then determine the meals I will consume for the week. I analyze each meal to determine the nutrition factor of the meal broken down into calories, fat intake, carbohydrate intake etc. I then make my grocery list for the food items and hit the store. Planning beforehand
allows me to go to the store with
purpose and stick to my list. Once home I begin preparing my food for each meal, each day. I break the food items into their portions for each day and then when it is time for me to eat, I just grab my meal and heat it up. This not only ensures I am successful but it's quick and allows me to eat the food I need to eat rather than any cravings I may have.
Yes, I eat the same thing every day. This not only helps food preparation more convenient for me, it also allows me to see what my body responds to and does not respond to for the goals I am trying to obtain.
Here is my first week of my new plan.
Week One Monday-Sunday
Breakfast: Mellie's Scrambled Eggs with Kale
AM Snack: Mellie's Trail Mix
Lunch: Mellie's Avocado chicken salad
PM Snack: Vega Protein shake, one scoop with 8 oz. of Coconut Water mixed
Dinner: Mellie's Herb Sirloin Roast
Bedtime Snack: Vega Protein shake, one scoop with 8 oz. of Coconut Water mixed
5 Liters of Water during the day, 2 Liters with lemon water added in.
Mellie’s Scrambled Eggs with Kale
Ingredients
- 4 egg whites
- 4 ounces avocado
- 3 cups of kale
- 1 tsp coconut oil
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat skillet on medium.
- Whisk eggs in bowl.
- Slice avocado and place aside.
- Add coconut oil to skillet.
- Add eggs and kale to skillet.
- Once eggs are cooked add avocado.
- Pepper to taste.
Mellie’s Trail Mix
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Almonds
- 1 Cup Raisins
- 1 Cup Sunflower Seeds
- ½ Cup Shredded Coconut
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients together.
Mellie’s Avocado Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 7-5 oz. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
- 21 oz. ripe avocado
- ½ red onion
- 4 limes- juice only
- 6 tablespoon cilantro
- Pepper
- 6 scallions
- 4 stalk celery
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together and enjoy
Mellie’s Herb Sirloin roast Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 lbs Sirloin top roast
- 1 tsp Paprika
- 1 tsp Garlic powder
- 1 tsp Onion powder
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp oregano
- 2 Tbsp Coconut oil
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Mix paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, oregano, and pepper in a bowl
- Add Coconut oil, mix together and let it sit at 10 min
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Place roast on aluminum foil and cover all sides with mixture
- Roast for 50-65 min
Side Salad to go with the Sirloin roast
Ingredients
- 3 cups mixed green salad
- 2 oz of whole walnuts
If you have any questions please feel free to follow me or contact me on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/michelleprincesslee
Or you can join and follow a group of people I help as well: https://www.facebook.com/groups/283984468364052/
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