I've lost the complete Oxford Dictionary!!

Pounds lost this Week: 1 Pound
Pounds lost since Surgery: 108 Pounds
Pounds lost Overall: 150 Pounds

Pounds to GO until GOAL: 45 Pounds

So, just one pound but it's one pound that I don't have to worry about. A pound is a pound gone and I'm proud of myself. And if you notice the title, I've lost the Complete Oxford Dictionary. That's 150 pounds. I Googled it and Google Imaged it. See below and imagine carrying all these bad boys around with you all day every day!

It was a great week. Pretty busy, but a great week. Nothing special happened on Wednesday and Thursday. Just work, gym and school.

On Friday, we spent the evening with Miss Ry and we watched Malificent. I loathe Angelina Jolie but I gotta give it to her. She did a pretty good job in this film. She almost made me like her. Rylee fell asleep about half way through but was seeming to enjoy it until the school exhausted set in.

Saturday was the annual MRHC employee celebration. I love where I work. I love the people that I work with and planning this celebration is the highlight of my year. Saturday morning, Johnathan and I got up and met some of the best people in the world that we work with, specifically Marge, Tiffany, Denise, Terry, Deborah, Ashley, Chris and Scott and set up the expo for the celebration. I am so thankful to have a team like these that works hard to make it special for everyone else. It was a great morning. We set up the tables and it turned out beautifully. We even had a photo booth (I'm sure you saw the pictures).

That night was the celebration. I had a blast. Johnathan recieved his five year award. I'm so proud of him. He's grown professionally and personally. He's a great employee. It's been awful nice to always have a lunch date these last five years. I was recognized too for my hard work on the event, but it wasn't just me. If I didn't have co-workers like Tiffany, Marge, Terry, Denise, Deborah, Ashley, Chris & Scott, it would not have been a success. Again, I can't tell you how grateful that I am for these people who have been there to help and support me. Anyways, we had good food too. Carey Out BBQ was the caterer and the smoked turkey was totally delicious and low-carb friendly!! I would defintely recommend them if you are in need of catering service. Brangus provided the open bar and did a great job! And the band is The Outside and they are from Broken Arrow. They are AWESOME! They play a range of music and I had a blast dancing to their beats (HA!). I may not have much rhythm but I sure love to dance. I may look like an idiot but I have a complete blast doing it!! I even did the Wobble. YouTube it. It's so much fun!!

One thing that caught my attention was everyone kept telling me out beautiful that I looked. Even senior leadership and board members. And for once, I didn't deny it. Because I FELT beautiful. It's not too often when I feel this. But it's getting more and more often when I feel that outwardly I am getting pretty. Say what you will about how I've always been pretty, but I've never felt pretty or been pretty. I feel like I'm starting to feel pretty. And on Saturday night in that navy dress and red heels, I was beautiful. I may not be the girl that gets hit on, but ya'll, I was so pretty. The CEO even commented on my beautiful transformation. I've never thought of it like that I have transformed and it's been a beautiful one to the road to being healthy. Below is a picture of last year vs. this year. Notice, last year's picture is just a head shot. This just shows that I'm getting more comfortable with my body and that I feel pretty. This time last year, I would've died if someone took a full body picture.  It also shows Johnathan's transformation. He's worked hard too and again, I'm so very proud of him and his hard work. He's been my rock and the reason why I'm here writing this blog. I loved him then and I love him now!!

Sunday, we woke up and got right to work. It takes alot to set up for the event, but just as much work to tear down. We unloaded all the stuff and then we headed to get Miss Ry. Sunday's are RyRy/LuLu Sunday Fundays and she knows it. Anyways, since Old Man Winter has decided to make an appearance this week, we headed down to Lane to winterize the camper. It made me so sad. I just wanted to hook up and head to the lake. We also decided to go shopping. I put on my coat from last winter. It was a 4X. It was HUGE on me and knew it would protect me from the cold. One thing I have noticed is that since I've lost all this weight, I canNOT keep warm. I don't know what it is but it drives me nuts. I just want to be warm. So, we went to JC Penneys. And I found the perfect coat. It's a peacot tranch and super cute. Wanna guess what size I bought?! A LARGE! Most of the clothes that I'm trying on and buying are size Large. No X's in front of L. It's exciting. I can even fit some Mediums. I never thought I would be this small and really it's not small, but I'm really proud of myself and all the work that I've put into this transformation.

Today, I went to physical therapy to address the back pain issue. Let me also recommend the McAlester Outpatient Therapy Services for any of your needs. It was AMAZING. So, I do have some inflammation on my SI joint but also my pelvis is out of alignment in that one side is higher than the other. Also, my core is not as strong as it should be and could cause problems when I do become pregnant. Today was a really relaxing and easy day. I got lay on what was a giant heating pad while receiving electronode therapy. It was awesome. I also did some exercising to help work out those issues. I go back in the morning and am going to continue 3 days a week until mid December. I just don't want to medicate myself. I want to work out the issues without narcotics.

So, great week. I need more weeks like this with a little fun, a little hard work and a little relaxation. I also need more days where I feel beautiful. Every girl needs days like that.

Prayer requests for this week: Continue to pray that God will soon bless us with a baby. Pray for pain relief for my back.

Thank you all for being so supportive and for making me feel beautiful this weekend. I honestly, no joke, can't do this without all of your supportive comments whether it's online or face to face. You all mean so much to Johnathan and I.

And as promised:

Recipe of the Week:

Spicy Onion Rings

Ingredients:
8 oz Onion Rings cut into 1/2" rings
2 oz Pork Rinds, crushed very fine
3/4 tsp. Creol Seafood Spice Blend
4 Tblsp Light Mayo

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450
2. Slice Onion and separate until you have 8oz
3. Parboil for 1 minute in boiling water
4. Lift onions out onto paper towels and totally dry
5. Crush pork rinds very fine. remove any larger hard bits
6. Mix spice into rinds in a small bowl
7. Pour mayo into another bowl
8. Slowly dip an onion ring into the mayo, coating the outside and inside with finger if necessary
9. Drop the coated onion into the rinds and coat well on the outside and inside
10. Bake for 25 minutes; however, yo umay want to turnover at the 15 minute mark