Surgery

2 weeks ago I had surgery and therefore that is why I have been absent for a couple weeks, it has been hard just getting out of bed to Blog, or get on the computer at all.
This has been super stressful for me as I am a very active person.  I love my job and I love being a mom and love getting up and moving. So it has been a trying time for me.

First of all I should say that I have some super awesome people who have helped me out along the way.

First of all my wonderful husband, he has been super awesome.  He has been super protective and wonderful to me.  He is such a wonderful dad, he doesn't have a problem watching all 4 kids and getting them off to school.  He also got them all ready for Halloween and took them trick-or-treating.

My mom has also been especially wonderful.  She watched the kids for 2 days and over night so that I was able to have Chris at the hospital with me.  She has also come and done my dishes and taken my kids several more times, so I can rest.  She also took James to his last Super Bowl party.  I was super sad to miss it, but glad James got some alone Grandma time.

Also my wonderful friends, Maxine and Kacie, and my aunt Denise brought me meals, which were super helpful, and kept us full for a very long time.  I ate leftovers for days and loved it.

Also one of my wonderful mother-in-laws was able to come and spend 4 1/2 days caring for me.  It was awesome, I was able to sleep in, and she cleaned my house, and it was most wonderful to have her here.  She also did some baking with the kids and made them Pudding paint.  The kids had so much fun, but I am super glad I wasn't the one who had to clean it up.

I also cannot workout for 6 whole weeks, 2 down and 4 to go, it is killing me.  Working out is like my stress reliever and my sanity, so by the end of the day I am a little irritated with things.  I am glad that I understand how to eat healthily and to take care of my body, so that I don't lose all of my hard work.

Now after 2 weeks I am feeling better, but I still have a ways to go.  I will start blogging better from now on though. 

My Facebook page is not working today, or I would have some pictures.

Chocolate pudding

Grandma is visiting, helping to take care of me after my surgery, today her and the girls decided to paint with chocolate pudding on the table. They had a blast and made a mess, glad I wasn't on clean up duty.

Fear and Courage

I just want to tell you about an extremely awesome conversation I have with my extremely awesome family this summer.

We had a discussion about fear.

Now let me tell you something about fear, I have literally let fear run my life.  I have always been afraid of not being good enough.  Been afraid of being friends and getting close to people for fear that they won't like me the way I do them.  Fear of being myself, for fear that people will find out who I really am.  Fear of getting out of my comfort zone.  Fear of Spiders.  Fear of getting hurt.

As a mother I am afraid of passing my fear onto my children.  Fear is a really real thing in my life, and I have always tried to hide from it.

This summer at a family reunion we have what we call a dialogue and I was asked to come up with the topic.  Naturally this scared me to death, what if they didn't like my topic?  What if no one talked? What if we just sat in silence for the entire hour? What if, What if, What if.  I came up with the topic of fear, and then I changed it, but I kept coming back to fear.

So as I introduced the topic, I was surprised at how much I had to say on the topic.

I have learned over these past few months about how much you can grow by getting out of you comfort zone.  I have done a lot of new things and guess what I haven't died once.  I even went cliff diving.

I have started doing a file of things that I do, and trying new things, and in this file there are two folders one says " I can't and I died" and the other says "I can and I lived".  Guess what I have nothing in the "I can't and I died" folder.  Do you know why?  Because everything I have done I have learned something from. 

During our conversation we talked about a lot of different things.  I found out that many of the people there had the same fears as I did, people that I never thought. 

We talked about how we are all afraid, but the courage is being afraid and doing it anyway.

I think that as we face our fears we realize that there really was never anything to be afraid of anyone.  I used to have a super duper fear of Spiders, and my husband would always say, "You are a million times bigger than it is,  You are not the one that should be afraid"  It is funny how the older I get the less afraid of them I am and the more annoyed.

So make a commitment to yourself that you will try one new thing a day.  Put yourself out there, and you will be surprised at how much you will grow.

Corn Maze Round 3

Three times a charm right.

Well yesterday I had the opportunity to go to the Corn Maze One More Time, yes that's right 3 times in one week, can't beat that.

I had a really great times all 3 times, but this time I got to go with my family.  My mom and dad, two of my wonderful sisters, 3 of my kids and 7 of my nieces and nephews.  Yes it is quite the group, but considering my whole family it was a small portion of us.

We had a lot of fun, the kids really like to ride the train, and play in the little maze part made out of the big bales of hay.  They had fun shooting one another in the air soft gun arena, and we didn't get lost in the maze, but the kids are way faster than the adults.

Grandma and I took a few of them on the wagon to go to the pumpkin patch, and had a fun time looking at all the pumpkins.

I really missed my James though, we do this every year, and usually Chris is working, but James is always with me.  He was really sad about missing it, but we decided that hunting for several days was worth missing out on a few hours at the corn maze.  But it was weird watching his cousins playing without him, because usually he is there with me.

Sorry for the picture overload, but it was just to much fun.

I'm so glad when daddy comes home

Sometimes our lives get so crazy that the kids barely get to see their dad.  By the time he gets home at night we are either at a practice, lesson or a game, or deep into chores, homework, and reading.  Tonight was one of those rare nights that we had nothing going on, and we had the house clean by the time Chris got home, so he came in and just started wrestling with the kids.  I have to tell you that this is my favorite thing in the world, watching your husband play with your kids is really the greatest happiness that there is.

My kids absolutely adore their dad, so it was just a fun night.  I even sat aside my dishes and work and we all just played for about an hour.  The kids were so happy.

I think that sometimes we forget about what is important, and we really need to step back and spend these special times with your kids.  These are the things that they will remember.

Remember that the way children spell LOVE is TIME!!

WHY!!

So I love working out, and I know that I fell better when I eat better. I also know that when I get up and do it before the kids get up I feel a lot better, and get a lot more done.

Lately though I have gotten into the bad habit of going back to bed after I get the kids off to school, what a terrible habit. Then I would wake up when Madelyn did and then not get my workout in until about 10:00 or 10:30 and get behind on everything for the whole day.

So why do we do these... things when we know that things are better when we do what we need to?

Why do we go to bed late when we know we have to get up early?

Why do we eat crap when we know it is bad for us and is going to make us feel like crap later?

Why do we choose not to workout when we know that it is good for us?

Why do we choose to get angry when we know it is up to us to decide how we react?

Why do we spend all day on our phones playing games when we know that there are so many other things we should be doing?

Why do we put off folding the laundry when we know that the pile is only going to get bigger?
I could go on all day!!! WHY

So I am going to get out of the bad habits that are holding me back and start making the decisions that will move me forward.

Bluebell Cornmaze

School Trips

Each year the Elementary takes their classes to the Bluebell Corn maze, which is a lot of fun.  They have a little class time, and then the get to go through the maze and then the get to go on a wagon ride and pick out a little pumpkin from the pumpkin patch.   This year I had the pleasure of getting to be a parent supervisor for James 4th grade class and Sam's 2nd grade class.  Lily and Sam went at the same time, so I wasn't able to go with Lily, but I did get to see her there and got a few pictures.

I love having the freedom to be able to go and do fieldtrips with my kids, I love being able to see them with their classmates, and getting to spend that special time with them.  I am lucky in that they want me there, and still are not embarrassed to have me be there.

Such a great life.

FOOTBALL WE LOVE FOOTBALL

SUPERBOWL CHAMPS

My son James played his first season of Football this year, and it was awesome.  He was a year behind the other kids of his grade, because he chose not to play last year, and most of the rest of them did.  He is also super afraid of pain and isn't very aggressive.  So we had to work with him a lot, and I think he came along ways throughout the year.  He was on the kickoff team, and since the team did so well it wasn't a bad place to be.  He also had a second string spot on defense and offense.

Although he didn't play a lot he learned a lot about team work, and how hard it is to practice everyday.  He also learned about how a community comes together to celebrate seeing their team do good, and try so hard.

I was super proud of him, it is the first sport that he liked going to play and that he liked going to practice.

I enjoyed watching my nephew and my sons friends do so well. 

I also love that my husband likes to help coach my kids teams, he spent two hours of his night at the practices and often had to leave work early to get to the games, but he did everything in his power to be there and to teach and help my son and the other kids.

 

My Job

 

So as a stay at home mom do you ever feel sometimes like you are lost, that you aren’t really you anymore.  Yes you love your kids and you love staying home, and yes you know you don’t want to be anywhere else. But something inside of you just wants a little more.  Well I that is how I was feeling last year.  I love my kids and I love staying home, and I really hadn’t lost myself, but I wanted something for ME.

So when I decided to lose the weight and start these groups with my sister-in-law, I was just in it for that, but I found so much more.  I found something that I love love love to do.  I found something that allows me to be home with my kids and be the mother that I want to be, but still have something that is just MINE. 

I also found something that lets me help other people and that makes my day.  I found something that forces me to get out of my comfort zone and find out just how strong I really am.

I recently just got done doing a very intense very important training all about how to train new coaches, and I am looking for 3 people who are ready to find something for them.  Why just 3, so I can make sure to give you all the training and time that you deserve and need.

You don’t have to be a skinny model to be a coach, you just have to be willing to use the product, and be proof the product works.

You have to be willing to commit to work on a team and be a part of the training I will give you, that was given to be by one of Beachbody’s top coaches.

You have to be willing to learn and grow.

If this is you than please fill out the application below and I will get you the information you need.

https://reginaatkin.reginaatkin.wufoo.com/forms/coaching-application/

Working out at Home

So many of you probably know that I have started working out at home a lot doing different programs.  Generally I try to get out of bed and do them before the kids get out of bed.  This last week I started doing a Hybrid of T25 and Les Mills Combat.  So I got up at 5:00 and did the T25 and then got the kids up and ready for School and sent my oldest 3 off on the Bus. 

Well I still had my little Madelyn here with me, and so I got her breakfast and started on my Les Mills Combat workout.  Madelyn ate her breakfast got down and started playing on the floor, well I wasn't paying that much attention to her, but she was a ways back so I though I was good. 

During the workout we had started doing our jump kicks and I went to wind up for a great big old jump kick and stepped back and stepped right on Maddies face.  Hard to, all of my weight and everything.

Needless to say I felt terrible, in the picture you can't really see the shoes marks, but they were there.  Luckily it was nothing a little sucker couldn't cure.  I felt so so soooooooooooooooooo bad.

So the moral of the story is, if you are going to do your home workouts, then you should probably make sure your kids are not laying on the floor behind you.

A day with my dad

 DAY WITH MY DAD

 

 

Growing up I always love riding horses and helping my dad on the farm and with the cows.  As I got older it got a little harder to help as much as I liked.  In high school I was always at a practice or a game, and then I moved away. 

 

 

It always seemed like whenever I came home there were other things going on, and I just never really had the opportunity anymore.  Well today I decided it was time to go up again, so I found some babysitters, and spend the day on the mountain with my dad.

 

We had a lot of fun, with the fall colors and the perfect weather, I could not have asked for a better day.

 

However my horse Earl was out of shape and I thought for sure he was going to die on me.  Some of the hills were super steep.  Towards the end he would just stop and refuse to go anymore.  I had to put everything I had into it to keep him going.  However I was never worried about getting thrown off.  I am pretty sure he couldn't have mustered the energy even if he wanted to.

I do have to brag about how I am pretty sure that I have the greatest dad in the world, he has always been there for me and my brothers and sisters.  He taught us about hard work and just basically how to be a good person.  I remember one time in High School there was a girl that had been made fun of and bullied one day.  Some how my dad had heard about it, and he sat me and my brother down and lectured us for a long time about how that is not ok, and even though my brother and I had not been involved we still learned a big lesson that day.  He is still the same way, if you ever talk to him about some one or say something at all about anyone he always says "OH their not so bad"  I used to hate it when he said that, but now I realize just how amazing he really is.

He always made time for us no matter what.  When my brothers and sisters and I played sports in High School he never missed a game.  When I was a senior in High School, I had a brother that was a junior and a brother and a sister both in Jr. High, and that years during basketball season, between he and my mom they attended over 150 basketball games.  They were very supportive.  I remember coming out to warm up and always looking into the stands to see where they were.  Every time I made a basket I always looked up to make sure they saw.

Now when I watch my kids play sports I see them do the same thing.  I love it.  I also will attend everyone of their games.





WHO I AM

Welcome to my blog, I hope that you will enjoy what I have to offer you.  First off let me share about who I am.  I am a mother, wife,  friend,  taxi driver, coach, ref, teacher, tutor, a motivator, a comforter, a nurse, I have magic kisses, a queen, a monster, a dinosaur, a builder, a fixer,  a cook, a maid, an organizer,  I am ocd about many things, I hate doing laundry, and I love to mow the lawn.  I am all these things and I do them all every day. 

I love being a mother, it was what I was meant to do,  it is the hardest yet most rewarding thing in the world.  I can have a bad day with my kids and think that being a mom is the worst, and all that can change in an instant when they say I love you mom, or to have them give you a hug, or to see them succeed at something, or simply to watch them find something funny. 

I love health and fitness and incorporating it into my family.  I enjoy having my children be involved in sports and having the opportunity to be involved in those things for them.  I also love having a healthy lifestyle myself.  That is one of my passions.  Teaching my family and others how to live healthy lifestyles and have a more positive life.