My Weight Chart:


Like I have said many times here... It doesn't matter when... It just matters that it happens. :D I am so excited.

I'm going to divide this post into two... Part 1 will simply say what happened and part 2 will explain what I felt about it. This retreat was different in the way that it made me think and made me come to some conclusions which I never have before!!!

I took the day off on Friday the 17th because I knew that I would need to pack and have a million last minute things to do before leaving. I am so glad that I did! I got to sleep in a little (until 9), got to go shopping, got my nails done, packed, and did some last minute paperwork... I felt so relaxed and at ease so that definetly set the mood for the rest of the day!

Our bus showed up at 3:30 and luckily we had no problems with people running late (well, maybe a just a couple), and everyone paid their donation with no problems at all... We departed at a decent time and even had a couple guests with us, Raul and Chivi who I made fun of the entire weekend for being free loaders hahahaa). We got lost on the road for about an HOUR which completely delayed my plan for showing up at 7, so we didn't arrive at the camp until about 8:30 :( . Luckily the service got pushed back to 11 so we did not miss that!

The camp was not so nice :( I expected it to be different than what we are used to but some things I did not expect, like no staff to take out trash, no toilet paper, no SOAP! Bad food, small space, very small and uncomfortable beds and rooms. Still, all of these incommodities were no comparison to the big blessings we recieved this weekend :)

Friday's service was just a short worship session and a reminder of the rules. Our singing group stayed to practice that night and didn't go to our rooms till about 2:30am.... Which was incredibly late considering the fact we were to be up at 5am the next day! I was a little upset at this point because I did not like the way the michs and instruments sounded (bad sound system, even though I know NOTHING about this kind of stuff, I could tell cause my throat was KILLING me for having to shout into the mich in order for my voice to be audible) but I later realized that was something that was out of my control or anyone else's so I decided to forget about that and just enjoy worshipping and singing to my Lord :)

I took a shower as soon as I got back to my room cause there was no way I would be up early enough to take one the next day. Surprisingly I didn't feel THAT bad for only 2 hours of sleep, so we all got ready for the 6am service, which was really nice :) Sadly I slept through alot of the message but in the times I was awake I took some notes and God really spoke to me through it. The singing was awesome like always and Greta took a part and I was amazed at how many people worshipped along with her (something she mentioned on the bus that was her dream).

Breakfast was DISGUSTING. I need to say no more. :(

The rest of the day was incredibly hectic... something I did like was that they gave us a free camp tshirt this year (first time ever!), and we all wore it for the group pic... :) For the next service Greta, Jenn, Nessa and I sang the devotional, which we had practiced for a couple times, but got completely changed around because some of the songs we had picked had been sung already. That change was a little stressful for me because I was a little unsure of what to do, but thankfully it went well. I thought it would have been better, but it was nice :) Singing with these girls is always a blessing and I am glad God has given me the opportunity to participate in something like this!

After this were conferences, which I had to miss one in order to be able to shower and get to practice for the night service devotional! But I really enjoyed the one I got to attend, and the altar call was just beyond amazing. So many people passed up and reconciled their lives to God, and I could honestly say we could feel God's presence in that place.

The night service came (the "BIG ONE") and we did our thing... 1 1/2 months of practice was finally being put to the test!!! I think we did well... We let ourselves be guided by God and although we didn't sing all the songs we had rehearsed I know that we did what was meant to be done. It was an awesome experience and I really hope I get to do it again. This service was filled with many different and new things, like pantomimes and worship, and I really felt like my "true-worshipper" side came out!!! I sang and sang like if no one was around, and that's always an amazing feeling! And the message spoke to me straight out like no other message has before, but that's for my other post ;)

We got to mingle for a while afterwards (usually camp rules are strict and we can't do this) so we didn't go to bed until about 3 again. Since the food was so bad my sweet mother sent us a cooler filled with PUPUSAS!!! It was the best food I have ever eaten!!! I was starving hahaha... so at night we ate and talked and off to bed for another (semi)early day.

Sunday came along, the last day of the retreat, and we all decided to sleep in and skip breakfast. I was glad to be going home to a clean room and real food, lol. Worship was awesome and we didn't get to stay through the entire service since it ran late and our bus arrived. So we had to say our good byes and didn't even get to hear the message :(

And of course, as always, the grand finale is the service on Sunday night at the local churches. I really enjoyed it because I felt like I sang and sang with no regards to time or anything... Even though some people may not have liked that I felt like it was just what I needed.

Whooo! This post came out waaaay longer than intended to be, but I just want to keep it forever and never forget this lovely weekend. Soon i'll post the real important thing... What I learned. :)

YUP YUP YUP!!! Cause I can do everything I want on it :)Transfer money, check my balance, pay my credit card, even log into my mom's and borrowing $ from her (always with her permission of course :) )

It's 1:30AM and I still have not gone to bed... And it looks like I might be up for a couple more hours! Lately my days have been so long and I get up so extra early and work and work after that, and somehow manage to squeeze school in there! Today I worked an 8-hour shift at work (luckily the job is not tiring at all, just a little dull and boring :[ ), then tutored for two hours, then retreat rehearsal for another two... That's 12 hours being away from home! Now I am used to having long days of being out and about cause I have practically lived this way since 2007, but I kinda got used to having a daily routinely schedule in the summer as opposed to a different schedule everyday now... It sucks, but I am in such a nasty financial situation that I have to do all that it takes to get myself out of it.

On another note, retreat is approaching in just a couple days... I am totally not ready, I haven't even finished shopping, let alone PACKING, and I am just as nervous as can be!!! Hopefully being in charge of the youth is not as big a task as I anticipate it to be... Getting those kids in the bus might be stressful but I do have plenty people who are willing to be helpers.

I am very excited for this weekend... This would be about my 9th retreat and I am usually not excited, ever... I just go because they're an annual thing... I should clarify that I NEVER regret going and I always feel something amazing when I go, but it's rare the times that I am actually anxious, excited and HAPPY before going! It only happened to me once and that was the best one I have ever attended, so I have a feeling this one is going to be BIG! :)

My sister and I and some other people are going to get to sing up there... Obviously I won't be leading or anything (to be honest I don't even consider myself a singer at all), but it's such a great honor that we were given this opportunity. Practices have been "eehhh" to say the least, but I have a feeling that despite what we think, God is gonna shine through so greatly that even we won't believe it!!!

test....
So why do ppl hate this so much? lol

Sometimes, no matter what you want to think and feel, your heart keeps insisting on what is right. You try to deny it and ignore it but the reality of the situation is always there. You can try and change destiny but the truth of the matter is that what's meant to be will be no matter what you do.

The question is, how much time is too long, and how much time is just enough? The beauty of life is not knowing whether the decision you made would have given the best result. We just have to trust those gut feelings and take the jump.

We'll see where this leads me. </3

So, I am starting a very serious weight-loss plan and pretty much training myself to become healthy for the rest of my life. My weight has soared so high in the past few years that it has begun to worry me... I worry that I am so young and I may have health problems later in life (or possibly sooner!) for something that could be so easily avoided. So, without further ado, I decided to document every step of this journey, talk about the good, the bad, and the ugly. Well, one ugly I'll leave out for now is a bathing suit "before" picture... When I feel ready, I will post that. ;)

Growing up I was never "skinny" or thin, nor was I too overweight. Throughout high school ('00-'04) I was always around 150ish... Note that I am only 5'1" so I was a bit on the thick side, but not fat.

( Click to read more... Sort of pic heavy :P )

I am willing to work hard and I am determined for my health to lose weight. I have been on a weight ROLLER COASTER and I know that alone is bad for me! What motivates me is that I KNOW I can lose the weight. I have done it before and I can certainly do it again!!! This time, though, I need to learn how to make it part of my life and not something that just happened without careful planning. I am ready, motivated, and very excited to work towards a healthier ME! :)