It has been a month since I started my Cize & Shakeology Challenge Pack. I wasn't sure how it was going to go, I didn't know if I was doing the right thing, I felt guilty about taking care of me, but I was excited. I was excited I finally decided to take control of my life, my health, my fitness, for my family.

This excitement quickly diminished after the 2nd week. I was in pain. My body felt broken. I felt defeated. I didn't realize how much abuse I had put my body through until the pain came screaming back at me during each workout. I tried pressing on, no pain no gain right? But it got worse. I had to stop, I missed a day, then tried again... it was bearable so I did the workout again... next day I skipped... next day I skipped again... next day I could workout again. I felt like a failure like my body was completely betraying me. I wanted this to work so bad that failing this so soon was depressing.

It took me a couple days to realize that I wasn't failing. I was listening to my body and doing what I could. I was doing something, which was more than I had been for the past year. I was still drinking my Shakeology every day. I was still watching my portions every day, I just couldn't perform the workouts every day.

Thankfully, I had a check up with my doctor scheduled last week. I told him everything I was doing as well as my concerns. Evidently, exercise is the best thing I can do
right now. We discussed some options for the pain and I was sent home with a new outlook.

Failing would have been throwing in the towel and stopping everything. Failing would have been taking steps backwards instead of keeping the pace and trying to move forward. Failing would have been not seeking my doctor's advice. Failing would have been hiding behind the keyboard and keeping this confession to myself.

And despite it all when I stepped on the scale I was absolutely shocked that I had lost 10 pounds.10 pounds, just doing what I could do!

So today, this is my confession but it is also my hope that it becomes your inspiration. Keep it up and fight the fight. You are winning even when it feels like you are not. You are winning by just doing!

This experience has reminded me so much of what I need to do in my faith and my relationship with God. Some days I get so caught up in what I am not doing, what I should do, that I forget to remember what I have done and what I am capable of doing now even if there are things I can't do or that I don't know. God sees my efforts and knows my heart. I just have to keep up my fight for him and search for him.

Have a wonderful day dear followers!

Yes! My Cize and Shakeology Challenge Pack showed up just in time for me to start my fitness journey on January 1st! The Pack came on Dec. 31st and I was headed over to visit my Mom when I noticed the box on the porch. I decided to take it with me and check it out when I got there. When I arrived, I decided to pop in the first Cize dvd to see just what I got myself into. The first workout wasn't too bad, really easy pace, moves were demonstrated and explained well, and they gave you plenty of time to get the hang of it before moving on to the next move. My mom even liked it, she wants to schedule a day or two to dance.... I mean Cize, with me ;) So, to me, this is a winner!

I'm also so excited my mom got us a blender for Christmas because it made making the Shakeology shakes a piece of cake and yummy! I've been playing with it for the past three days.

Jan 1
I started out making a Strawberry Lemonade shake... Added Lemon Juice, a bit of Honey, Water, and Ice to my Strawberry Shakeology mix. To be completely honest, it wasn't great. I think I added too much water and ice, it watered it down and didn't taste that great, however it wasn't horrible and I drank the whole thing. To my surprise, I felt awesome. I had more energy than I've had in a long time. I took down our Christmas tree amd Christmas decorations, cleaned, reorganized, and vaccumed the living room with tons of energy to spare.

Jan 2
I decided to skip the ice and cut up and froze a banana and some blueberries instead. I added those to my water and Strawberry Shakeology mix and it turned out rather tasty. The shake was thick and creamy and delicious! I also had even more energy than the first day. I decided I wanted to move the girls' bedroom into the playroom, move our room into the girls' room, and move the playroom into our old room. I got everything done except vaccuming our old room and moving the girls' toys into it done.

Jan 3 TODAY
Since I mastered the Strawberry shake combo I changed it up and went with Vanilla Shakeology mix, water, and a cut up and frozen banana. Amazing! I think I'm going to like having shakes for breakfast now! This new found energy is great, I woke up refreshed this AM and got out of bed easily. After church I was able to finish the remaining movement and cleaning to transistion  our old room into the playroom.

I probably could have done more, with all the extra energy I had but decided to hang out and spend time with the girls before Big Sister has to go to school tomorrow.

Have a blessed Sunday dear followers!

Hello dear followers!

I am feeling so confident in my Beachbody Challenge Pack, I would love to invited YOU to join my Challenge Group! Having a Challenge group is a great way to help keep yourself accountable for your New Years Fitness Resolution!

What is a challenge group?
A challenge group is an online support system to go along with the purchase of your challenge pack and the challenge group is FREE. The challenge group is an added bonus that allows you to SURROUND YOURSELF WITH PEOPLE that challenge you, encourage you and believe in you.

Where is the challenge group?
The comfort of your own home and on your own schedule. No appointment necessary. The challenge group is hosted through a private facebook group page that allows you to check in when you need encouragement or accountability and to inspire those needing the same.

When does the next challenge group begin?
The next group opens up on January 6th (in 10 days) so catch up with me now to get all the information and details about your customizable challenge pack options.

What is a challenge pack?
The challenge pack comes with a dialed in nutrition plan, Shakeology: healthiest meal a day, fitness DVD set and calendar to follow all in one convenient package.

I am currently working on the Cize and Shakeology Challenge Pack. Check out this video to learn more!



If Cize isn't what you are looking for, have no fear! There are so many different Challenge Packs to choose from!

If this sparks your interest and you'd like more information, please feel free to email me at

coachkelc at gmail dot com

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and hopefully I will meet up with you in the New Year for my Challenge Group!

Okay, so maybe I have left you all hanging a bit too long. I am so sorry about that. For those that are still here with me THANK YOU! I greatly appreciate your faith in me and my return. As the year is ending I have decided that I need some changes in 2016.

In my house the moral behind James 2:17 keeps popping up. Not just once but many times this past month the concept of "faith without works is dead" has been brought to my attention. I have faith in God that I can do anything with His help, if it is His will. I know that He only wants good for me. Good for me is... feeling good, having energy, being healthy, and helping my family financially. Even though I have faith I can have all these things I didn't really know what to do to achieve them therefore I was doing nothing.

I recently reconnected with a long time friend. Through her help and guidance I have found a program that will help me reach my goals. 2016 is my year! It is my year to renew my mind, my body, and my faith.

Sound like something you need? Want to know my secret?

I have decided to become a Beachbody Coach. I am plugged into a great group of Christians and I am ready to be healthy and full of energy again.

Want to learn more about Beachbody? Feel free to check out my site: http://www.beachbodycoach.com/coachkelc
Or shoot me an email at coachkelc at gmail.com

I am always looking for new friends to join my Beachbody Team! Keep coming back because I plan to show my progress here on the blog!

Have a wonderful day dear followers!

It may not be surprising that my husband affectionately calls me "Ellie Mae" from the Beverly Hillbillies when I bring up wanting to add a new addition to the farm. My adventures in poultry raising has been...interesting. Rural King is my worst enemy in the spring, as they faithfully have the cutest day old chicks, ducklings, and goslings, every year. Don't get me started on auctions, I brought home a calf in the back of my dear sweet husband's van once, as well.

So, when I admit that I have been researching goats for a while now, this will probably not be surprising as well. I am really interested in making goat's milk soaps, especially after purchasing some online. I became even more intrigued as I learned about raw milk benefits for my girls.

Well, a couple days ago, I decided to bring up goats to my husband, again. You see, this isn't the first time we have discussed it, last year's adventures at the Petting Zoo really brought the idea to the forefront of my mind. As we get closer and closer to finishing the house, I feel like it is something we need to do, for our family. Maybe I caught him on an off day, because my husband said yes and he even is making suggestions on where to put their pasture and shelter!

I have decided that I want to start with a pair of Dwarf Nigerian does for milking and as pets. I chose this breed for their ability to produce a nice amount of milk for their size and because I think that they will be small and docile enough that the girls can enjoy them as well.

So, I am in the planning process, trying to decide on pasture/shelter size (alloting for babies in the future) that won't put too much strain on our budget.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Have a wonderful day dear followers!

 Well, I've got it. I've come down with the bug. The Gardening Bug has started to infect my home again this year. Without even realizing it, I've been online researching flowers, shrubs, and trees to plant up at the new house! New house? Yes, we are in the process of remodeling a Repossessed Modular. The idea of a new house was hatched while I was pregnant with Little Sister and we wanted to have something to move into by the time she was rolling over. Well, plans don't exactly go as planned and here we are in January 2013 and still not moved in. The modular was so low priced that we couldn't resist and building a new house from scratch was way too expensive. The "New house" has been a work in progress since September 2011. We had to wipe out a bunch of nice trees to get the thing up on the hill and now it is disgustingly bare around the house. It needs some color, it needs some landscaping, it needs SOMETHING! So, while infected with the bug, I will be searching for plants to beautify my new space!

If you have any suggestions for plants that will weather well on a sandy hill, please feel free to comment! I need all the help I can get!


Have a wonderful day dear followers!

So far this year we've gone through several changes at our house. The first, I explained in a previous post. The second, we decided to transition Little Sister from a crib to a Toddler Bed!

It took me a long while to decide to transition Big Sister. I think she was around 15 months when I busted open the box and put together her toddler bed. I just didn't want to give up my baby and a toddler bed meant she was a big girl. Big Sister adjusted to the change better than I could have ever imagined, so this time around with Little Sister I was hoping it would go just as smooth.

We were given a toddler bed and it has been sitting on the porch since I was pregnant with Little Sister. Little Sister was trying to climb things, which made Hubby and I a little nervous about the possibility of Little Sister deciding to climb out of her crib. So, on February 26th I washed off the toddler bed, brought it into the house, and set it up in Big Sister's room. I put a small desk lamp in the corner of the room on the dresser so that she wouldn't be scared of the new room since Big Sister's night light was burnt out and I needed to buy new bulbs.

Both girls had not had naps all day, which I did on purpose, I figured it would be easy to get them to go to sleep at bedtime even with the new change. I put Little Sister down first, she was a little restless so I gave her a bottle and stayed with her until she fell asleep. After I was sure Little Sister was asleep, I put Big Sister in her bed and tucked her in. Piece of cake, it went PERFECTLY!

The next day proved to be a little more difficult. I hadn't really figured out what I would do at nap time, but once Little Sister fell asleep I took her in and laid her down in her bed. Big Sister was awake but ready for a nap as well, so after about 30 minutes I put her down in her bed. Well, that was a bust. Big Sister decided she wasn't really ready for a nap, so she woke Little Sister up and they both were up for the rest of the day. Bedtime was okay, Big Sister crashed and burned and was out cold. This was good because Little Sister cried and cried for a while, even with me sitting next to her bed waiting for her to go to sleep.

The third day, I reexamined my nap time plan. I decided to let Big Sister skip her nap and just put Little Sister down in her bed during nap time. At bedtime Big Sister was exhausted and went right to sleep. I decided to turn off the lamp to see if the darkness would help Little Sister fall asleep better. It worked, I gave her a bottle and she rolled over and went right to sleep.

Fourth day, same as the third, it was a success however Little Sister fell out of bed at bedtime. I went in to put her back in bed. She whimpered a little from the fall but was easy to sooth right back to sleep.

Day 4 I crept in to take a photo of my Sleeping Beauties!

Day five was insane! Both the girls woke up in the morning really fussy but Big Sister was running a fever. I HAD to run into town so both girls skipped naps. At bedtime, Big Sister went to bed early. Little Sister went to bed smoothly but fell out of bed again. She went back to sleep well with a little soothing rub on her back. For some odd reason though, Big Sister woke up around midnight and decided to turn on the light. I went in and turned off the light and told her to go back to bed. I did this three times, but on the third time it woke up Little Sister. I was able to get Little Sister back bed and brought Big Sister out to the living room with me. Daddy agreed to stay up with her until she went to bed, I was glad because she didn't crash until 5:00AM!

From day six on we have had great success and no major issues getting the girls to take naps and go to bed. It kind on depends on the day as to what nap time is like. Little Sister usually goes down for a nap every day, unless we are running errands. Some days Big Sister will take her nap after Little Sister gets done with her nap or if she is really tired she will curl up on the couch and nap there. Little Sister has only fallen out of bed two times since the fifth night.

I have to admit that a couple of those early nights when we were first transitioning Little Sister, I REALLY wanted to just take her back to the crib in our bedroom. My hubby wasn't much help, he wanted me to bring her back into our room, especially when she kept crying that second night. I held my ground and worked through it and am SO happy about pushing forward. I know that other Moms out there have a much tougher time transitioning their little ones from a crib to a toddler bed, but my one piece of advice would be to stay strong and create a routine! It will get easier and you will be happy in the end!

How well did your little one transition and at what age did you decide to make the change to a toddler bed?

Have a wonderful night dear Followers and happy transitioning!

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I love surfing the net and finding interesting blogs. I've come across some interesting blogs that I'd like to share with you:

little Indiana is a blog about small towns in Indiana and all the awesome hidden treasure you can find among them! Please jump on over and check it out and tell them Rural Mama's Sandbox Sent you!

Also, a friend of mine started a blog a while back called 2 is Purrfect. She has several giveaways going on right now that you HAVE to check out! There is even one for Fort Wayne locals, so don't miss out!

I am going to making it a priority to start posting more, especially about my girls! They are the reason I started this blog and I seem to have been slacking a little when it comes to them. Little Sister is rarely mentioned and my journey as a mother is barely documented, so I'm kicking into high gear! 

Thank you for staying with me dear Followers and I hope you enjoy my future posts!
Kelsey

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Oh my goodness! I have been so busy with the new baby that I had totally forgotten that March 8th was my ONE YEAR BLOGGING ANNIVERSARY! I'm still trying to get into a schedule and unfortunately my organization skills aren't quite top shelf...yet.

When I had my first daughter (back then I called her "Baby K" instead of "Big Sister"), everything was new, a bit crazy at times (which was mostly due to my hormones, it probably wasn't really crazy, I just thought it was because I was "overly sensitive"), but it all worked out. I wasn't sure what I was doing about 15% of the time, but I figured it out fast and it all turned out good. I got lucky and by the grace of God, Big Sister was the "perfect" baby, easy to please, always happy, not clingy at all, and slept great right off. She was just perfect! Big Sister was what I like to call "The Sucker Baby". "The Sucker Baby" by my definition is the baby that is so good, so perfect, that it sucks you in so you have more babies. If this blog were a comedy TV show they would insert a scene right about now depicting Adam and Eve looking up to the clouds as the booming voice of God thundered loudly "Be fruitful and multiply..." taken from Genesis 1:28. Big Sister is just that a "Sucker Baby". Little Sister has, so far, proven to be a bit more difficult than Big Sister. We are still working on sleeping schedules, I would LOVE to get my 8 hours of sleep again, not sure when or if that will happen but I'm hoping so. She doesn't seem as happy and smiley all the time like Big Sister was and she seems to have less patience for me if I'm slow at making her bottle or changing her diaper. She is way more clingy than Big Sister and some days I just can't put her down or she will cry. Little Sister seems more gassy and spits up more than Big Sister ever did. Please take this the wrong way! I love both my babies tremendously and wouldn't trade or change them for anything! I know they are different people and everyone ALWAYS says that all pregnancies and babies are different... I just never thought mine would be, I don't know why, it seems silly but I think I was secretly hoping for Little Sister to be "Big Sister: The Clone Sequel". I guess that now I'm realizing just how different they are going to be as people, which is pretty cool and exciting now that I think about it!

Now that I'm starting a new chapter in my life and a new year of blogging here at Rural Mama's Sandbox, I thought I would share My Goals for the Blog this year:

>> To post to my blog more frequently - Last year I posted 49 times, this year I want to at least DOUBLE that with interesting and fun post!
>> To increase my followers - I currently have 12 followers, whom I love dearly, however I want to gain 10 times that many by my 2 Year Anniversary!
>> To do several product reviews AND giveaways - At least one per month starting in April
>> To have guest bloggers post about  parenting subjects relevant to my blog - I'd like to find bloggers from different age groups to get their perspective on similar issues.
>> To inspire other moms or moms to be out there! I will never know if I achieve this one, but it will ALWAYS be part of my blogging goal!

Well, I have successfully stayed up way too late!!!

Thanks for sticking in there with me dear followers!
Kelsey