Naked blogging: It Works

I've been debating for a long time whether to share this information, because I didn't want to admit that I had doubts about the products I've been using and selling, but I've come to the realization that a LOT of people have doubts about the products I've been selling, and sharing my story can only help.  This is hard to admit and even harder to put into writing, but I truly hope that sharing my doubts and worries can help someone out there to overcome their own.

I've been using It Works! products for a couple of months now.  I start my day with Thermofit (a natural metabolism booster) and Greens (to detoxify, alkalize and balance the body in addition to providing 8 servings of fruits and vegetables), take Fat Fighters (which bond with fat and carbs you consume to flush them out of your system) as needed if I cheat on my healthy eating or eat something to which I am allergic (my allergies aren't bad enough to prevent me from eating the things I like, but I have found that the Fat Fighters help flush the icky stuff out of my system before it gives me too much trouble) and end my day with New You (so many benefits I won't list them all here, but I will say it helps me sleep better!) and It's Vital (a multivitamin).  I felt a lot better, had more energy and less affects from my allergies but just didn't really feel like I was getting anywhere weight or inches loss wise, and I have to admit, I was getting pretty discouraged.  My wedding dress was tight and uncomfortable, my clothes weren't fitting any better and I didn't feel like I looked any better.  In the weeks leading up to the wedding, I had just about given up.  Between the I'm-too-busy-to-make-dinner-so-let's-just-go-out-to-eat and the I'm-too-stressed-out-to-curb-my-emotional-eating I just knew I was gaining weight.  Thankfully, my dress had a corset back, so I knew if I packed on a couple pounds I would be more uncomfortable, but still able to wear the dress.  I wrapped four times (a complete treatment) in the week and a half leading up to the wedding and still didn't feel like I was seeing any results but I just couldn't worry about it at that point.  Miss Thing, overhearing BBS and I talking about my frustration and anxiety over how the dress would fit, told me she thought I looked like I'd lost weight, but I just wasn't seeing it.  I felt awful about myself.  And then the big day arrived.  I don't think anyone else knew, but I was on pins and needles all day long.  Not because I was nervous about marrying Man, but because I was worried my dress wouldn't fit!  I hadn't had it on in about two weeks and I was just sure I was going to end up busting a seam and getting married in my sweats!  As I stepped into my dress, I worried that I wouldn't be able to get it up over my huge hips.  But it easily pulled up.  As I held the dress up I fretted that Mom wouldn't be able to snap the modesty panel in place.  But, despite her having to dig out her reading glasses to see the tiny closure, it clipped easily into place.  Then, as Mom laced the corset back, I agonized over whether she would have enough lacing to close up the whole back.  But there was lacing to spare and the dress fit better than ever.

All my worrying was for nothing.  I should have trusted my body instead of my mirror.  Despite eating junk, not getting enough sleep and running around like a crazy woman, I felt and still do feel) better than I have in years.  Looking at the pictures, I see now that I look better than I have in years.  I think we all have these images of ourselves in our minds, where we will never look as good to ourselves as we do to other people.  When Miss Thing mentioned that she thought I looked like I'd lost weight, we discussed that sometimes other people see the weight loss or body changes before you do because they don't see you every day, but I really think a lot of it has to do with how you look at yourself, too.  When I looked in the mirror I saw the crazy, stressed out nearing-bridezilla woman that I was at the time.  Now, looking at pictures, I'm able to see the happy, healthy, in love woman that I am.  And I am so thankful for my It Works! products that helped me survive that crazy time and will continue to help me become the most healthy version of me I can be!

Shower report

The shower was awesome! :)  Of course I knew BBS and my aunts weren't going to torture me too much, but it was really a great day.  My foster friend came over to do my hair and we were almost done when Man got home with the girls.  We finished up real quick and ran out the door.  The girls immediately gravitated toward Princess and Miss Thing while I made my way around visiting everyone and when it was time for gifts, all the little girls (our three, Princess and my cousin's two little girls) swarmed around me and "helped" me.  They brought me presents, unwrapped things, held things up for people to see, wandered off with gifts (especially the really cool stuff I really wanted!) and photo bombed just about every picture.  It was crazy, chaotic and wonderful!  There was one time when I had to ask the girls to back off just a little because I was starting to feel claustrophobic with them all so close but there was another time when I said to my aunt "I certainly feel loved today" and our oldest piped up with "we love you every day!" and that made all the squishiness totally worth it!  I am so lucky to love such amazing women who want to throw a shower for me, more awesome women who want to attend said shower and a bunch of crazy girls who steal the show and make it such a great experience for me!

It's a wonderful life

Remember when I said I have some really awesome family?  Well, I really do.  In fact, I have more examples.

Sunday I was completely wiped out after work.  Man called and asked me to stop at the grocery store on my way home to pick up a few last minute things for dinner.  I got home and he had things almost completely ready and was just waiting on my few items...which, of course, I got wrong.  Instead of getting frustrated that he put so much work into something I screwed up, Man totally rolled with it and made my mistakes work.  And we had an amazing dinner!  It was really awesome to come home to yummy smells and happy faces around the table!

Monday Man tromped through pastures, ducked into corn fields, climbed a semi and sat on farm equipment all in the sweltering heat so I could have the engagement shoot I've always wanted down at Dad's farm.  Yes, we did get engaged  in January, and yes we did just get our engagement pictures done in July, but time kind of got away from us, deal with it.  Additionally, an old friend from high school gave up an evening with her family and joined us in that sweltering heat at 7 months pregnant to take the pictures for us!

Wednesday BBS and I took 9 kids from 4 different families to the zoo.  We had BBS's 2 little ones (the 3 older ones are on vacation with our parents), Man's 3, the 3 kids BBS babysits and BBS's niece, ranging in age from 10 months to 11 years.  We sweat, we got rained on, we had an awesome time.  We fully acknowledge that we're crazy for taking so many kids, especially with only 2 adults, but there's no one else I would have rathered do it with!

Life may not be perfect, but I'm not sure how it could get much better!

I have some really awesome family

Two of my cousins came out to the house yesterday to work on our AC unit, which has been peeing all over our basement floor.  Correction: my cousin's husband and my other cousin's boyfriend came out.  They're not even technically family, but they still do these awesome things.  Turns out the drain line was damaged so they repaired it and updated it so Man and I can do maintenance on it ourselves.

Another cousin (who is also, legally, not a cousin, but is my aunt's ex-husband's son and chooses to stick around our family, because that's just how great we are!) is coming out next week to work on some plumbing issues we have and install our new dishwasher.

BBS has been busting her hump preparing things for my bridal showers.  Yes, showers.  As in, plural.  And BBS is taking the lead on both of them.  She has recruited an aunt or two from each side of the family and they've been working like mad women to ensure I have not one (my wedding), not two (my shower) but three (my second shower) special days.

BBS and hubby threw a 4th of July party yesterday and not only invited Man and I (who were the only ones there who were kidless, since our girls are with their mom) but waited dinner on us (since I had to work) and then raved about the strawberry pretzel salad Man made in which the jello refused to set up, so it was more like strawberry pretzel mush.  We had a great time and although the kids struggled with waiting until dark to set off the fireworks, we still got to see some of the prettiest ones!

For the past several weeks, Man has dealt with a grumpy, sleep deprived, over-worked-and-under-paid, confused and weepy Karen and taken it all in stride.

I've really been struggling lately with trying to find a balance between work, home, wedding planning and starting my It Works! business, but with such an awesome family, I know it will all work out.  I am so lucky to love so many amazing people!

Reality check

I was really having one of those days this morning.  I overslept, which sent everything tumbling all wonky.  I took a shower and realized was out of my favorite conditioner so I used the other stuff and now my hair is all heavy and weighed down.  I tripped over Wolfey getting ready for work and he looked at me like I'd beaten him, which was just about enough to send me to tears (especially since I'm PMSing).  BBS called and as much as I wanted to talk to her I had to rush her off the phone since I was running late.  I packed my lunch for work and couldn't find anything I needed, so I made a huge mess of the kitchen I just cleaned last night.  Finally, when I realized I was 15 minutes late leaving for work and didn't even have my shoes on yet, I woke Man out of his hibernation (and boy, can he be a bear!) to clean up after me.  I sped as much as I could but was still more than 10 minutes late to work.  Thankfully I always build in a cushion so I can get the store ready without having to rush, so I wasn't late opening my store, but I was definitely running around like a chicken with my head cut off.  It was really looking like it was going to be one of those awful days where absolutely nothing goes right.

And then I got my first customer.  He was a tall, thin, elderly gentleman who needed some help finding something that was right in front of him.  I put on my usual "friendly neighborhood pool supply lady" smile and went about my job, helping him find everything he needed and requesting that he pull up to the curb so I could load the heavy items in his car and he headed out the door.  My next customer, a young woman with a little boy, came in and was very friendly but pretty self sufficient so I told her to let me know if she needed anything but that I was going to stay near the front of the store so that I could see when the elderly gentleman pulled up.  I waited.  And waited.  And waited a little longer.  Finally I started scanning the parking lot to look for him, hoping he hadn't left without his purchases; I saw him standing in the middle of the parking lot with a completely bewildered look on his face.  I told the woman who was in the store what was going on and she offered to go out and help the man, but I was worried that if he was completely confused, having a stranger approach him might scare him, so she then offered to stay in the store while I helped the man.  We finally found his car (it was on the complete opposite side of the parking lot from where he thought it was), got him all loaded up and on his way and I returned to my store to ring out the lady who was watching the store for me.  The first thing she said when I walked in the door was, "I hope he's okay.  If he's that confused, I wonder if he's safe to drive."  Talk about restoring your faith in humanity!

I overslept, but it was because I have a comfortable, safe place in which to lay my head.  I didn't have the conditioner I like, but I had a hot shower and enough resources to have alternative conditioner on hand.  I tripped over my dog, but it's because he wants to be near me.  I rushed BBS off the phone, but she loves me enough to call me even at a time when she knows she may be rushed.  I had troubles packing my lunch, but I have food to pack.  Man was a little grumpy with me about being woken up, but he loves me enough to do it anyway.  I was late to work, but I have a job and enough job security to know that being late one time isn't going to get me fired.  It was such an awesome realization when it occurred to me that this woman had put her errands on hold, volunteered to help a man she'd never spoken to and taken complete responsibility for a store about which she knew nothing and her only concern was for the health and safety for a man she would never meet, and it really put my entire day into perspective.  I am truly thankful that I not only have these wonderful things, but to have these awesome experiences that help me appreciate how lucky I really am.

Jury duty

I finally wrote it!  I tried to publish this yesterday but my computer was acting up, so here you go, a bonus post today!  BBS has been serving jury duty.  I'm pretty sure I just heard a mass groan on that one, but let me share my perspective.  Our Judicial System is flawed.  It's slow, it's cold and it makes mistakes.  But the reason it makes mistakes is because it's run by humans, and we humans are inherently flawed.  However, I'm a big believer that if we don't participate in the system, we have no right to criticize it.  I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned this before (seems like all bloggers do a "meet me" at some point, but I've been going through my old posts and don't see one.  I may be seriously slacking here!) but I used to be a juvenile probation officer.  In the juvenile system, there is no such thing as a jury of your peers, so all the power falls to the judge and unfortunately I saw first hand what could happen if a judge or prosecuting attorney didn't like a kid.  So while the adult system is definitely flawed, the jury helps keep some of that in check.  I have to think that if I would ever make some big mistake, or be accused of something I didn't do, that I would appreciate the opportunity to be judged by a jury of my peers than by one lone person who could chose not to like me.  And because of that, while I know our system is pretty screwed up, and while I know it's a real pain to serve jury duty, I also believe it's quite an honor to be able to help someone else process through such a difficult time.  I know it has been a huge hassle for BBS and the kids have really taken it hard not having her around 24/7, but I'm so proud of her dedication and I know I'm lucky to love someone who so willingly serves her community.

She wasn't broken.

Roxie is getting "fixed" today.  I've never quite understood that terminology, but we'll go with it.  Anyway, the vet BBS uses happens to be really close to my work and since BBS is serving jury duty (which I think is awesome, by the way, but that's probably another post) and her hubby works in the opposite direction, I volunteered to drop Roxie off on my way to work.  Because I'm awesome like that.  I met her hubby in town before work to do the puppy exchange before we both hopped on the highway going opposite directions and I dropped Roxie and the crate off at the vet and went on my merry way.  BBS will pick Roxie up this evening and all will be right in the world.  Except one thing.  While I did remember to take Wolfey's crate with me for Roxie to ride in (she's outgrown her old crate and thankfully BBS lives really close to where her hubby and I met so he didn't have to drive very far with Roxie scrambling all over him because she's not used to being lose in the car) and I even remembered to leave the crate at the vet's office so BBS would have it when she picks Roxie up this evening, I forgot to leave Roxie's collar.  Because I'm smart like that.  So, BBS, you're welcome for saving hubby a trip in the wrong direction this morning, but good luck taking Roxie out to potty when you can't attach her leash!  Oops!