Swimplicity Weight Loss Challenge!

I have decided to hold a weight loss contest using the Slimplicity Weight Loss products!  Just in time to be ready for swimsuit season.  Hence the name Swimplicity.  To read more about this amazing weight loss system and results of others using this awesome system, click here! Read on to see how you can win by entering or just by telling your friends about this contest! 


The competition runs from January 1, 2010 until May 21, 2010.  On May 22^nd, 2010 the competitor who has lost the most weight will be declared the 1^st place winner of the competition.  Second and third place winners will be announced at the same time, again dependent upon the number of pounds lost.


The first place prize will be a choice of a Wii Game System with Wii Fit Plus Game pack,        or 

an Apple iPod Touch (16 or 32 GB) 

with iLive Stereo Speaker System Both together are valued at around $300.00), a $100 gift card to a department store (Kohl’s, Target, or Old Navy) and a $50 gift card to Footlocker. Total package valued at $450.00

Second place prize will be a $125 gift card to a department store (Kohl’s, Target, or Old Navy) and a $50 gift card to Footlocker.  Third place prize will be a $60 gift card to a department store (Kohl’s, Target, or Old Navy) and a $50 gift card to Footlocker. 

To learn how you can enter and for a complete list of rules and conditions, click here.


Win a $50 gift card just by telling your friends about this contest!!!


How to enter:
1.  Copy and paste this post to your own blog and add a comment to this post with your blog address. = 1 entry
2.  Follow me on Twitter(http://www.twitter.com/nutritionforu) and post a tweet about the contest linking back to this blog. = 1 entry
3.  Post on Facebook about the contest linking back to this blog, and add a comment to this post = 1 entry
4.  Follow my other blog Jessica's Health Corner at http://www.jessicabarnum.blogspot.com = 1 entry


The winner of the gift card will be announced on January 31st, 2010!  So check back here on the 31st!  Winner will choose a gift card to either Kohl's, Target, Olive Garden, Chili's or Red Lobster.  Winner will be notified through their blog, this blog, facebook, twitter or e-mail(if I have it) Good Luck!

ATTENTION ALL BLOGGERS!

If you have a blog, or website, and would like to enter a little giveaway I'm having, all you have to do it check back on January 1, 2010 to find out how you can simply post about my giveaway on your blog to be entered!  Don't forget to check back on New Year's Day to find out how!

Seriously need to update!

Hello everyone!  It seems like all I do these days in my "spare time" is work on the computer.  Watching tutorials about how to promote my website, get more customers, make money online(so I can quit subbing), etc. Then I am implementing what I am learning.  Whew!  But I am neglecting those I love by NOT posting.  So, I am sorry!  I am stopping for a moment tonight to write and tell you what I am thankful for.

1.  I am thankful for good friends.  I do not leave close to family and so the friends I have here are my family in many ways.  They have laughed and cried with me, been offended by me, loved me, been truthful with me, helped me and forgiven me.  I cannot say enough what a treasure good friends are!

2.  I am thankful for my family.  I love my husband and boys fiercely!  I could not live without them!  They love me unconditionally and I them.  They support me and "allow" me to do my various businesses sometimes when I shouldn't.  I am grateful for a husband who knows how to tell me "no" and "slow down", who rubs my feet when they hurt, which is often, and who loves me with all his heart!

3.  I am thankful to know that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me and who blesses me many times when I don't deserve it.

4.  I am grateful for the gospel, that wonderful plan of Happiness and for my Savior.  I could not progress without either.

5.  I am grateful for a wise mother who loves and listens to me.  Gives me good advice and lets me "figure it out on my own".  Even though sometimes I don't want to. :)

I think that just about covers the basics.  I am excited to this new year and all that is in store for us.  Kurtis' baptism (I know I can't believe it either!), Sean's 3rd birthday, our 9 year anniversary and much more I'm sure!  I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and all the best for a wonderful New Year!

ATTENTION ALL BLOGGERS!

If you have a blog, or website, and would like to enter a little giveaway I'm having, all you have to do it check back on January 1, 2010 to find out how you can simply post about my giveaway on your blog to be entered!  Don't forget to check back on New Year's Day to find out how!

NEW BLOG!

Check out my new blog!  Jessica's Health Corner!  You all know I have a passion for nutrition and good health! So I started a blog to help share what I have learned and continue to learn.  I will be posting articles, recipes and thoughts on a regular basis!  Become a follower of this new blog!  It's going to be AWESOME!

I've been doing it wrong!

I can't believe it! I have been singing wrong for the past, oh, 12 years! I came across a YOUTUBE of a girl giving a FREE voice lesson! It was seriously the most hilarious thing I have ever seen and heard. If you need a good laugh, watch this video. I think I should call her, get some 3 hour lessons since I'm "more advanced". What do you think?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWt2YJCJleY

Hello again!

We're back. There is just too much technology to keep up with. Facebook, blogging, texting, e-mailing my head is already spinning! We have had a busy past few months. So I'm just going to post a quick update and I will try to do more later.

In April we all went to CA for the MS Walk. It was such a great experience! I was so touched by having all my family there along with one of my best friends Brooke. After the walk we all went to a park and played, ate lunch and had a little b-day party for Ollie and Sean.

In May we got a dog. His name is Rufus. He is an inside/outside dog and Jessica had no idea she was allergic to dogs until she had the dog inside. So we have to vaccum at least once a day, but on the bright side, her carpet stays vaccumed(I can't say clean because my carpet is ridiculously dirty!) Jessica had another MRI and had a really bad reaction to the contrast dye that sent her to the hospital. By the end of the month she was much better. She also found out the results of her MRI and the verdict was . . . NO PROGRESSION of her MS. Woohoo!

June has been a good month. Jake received a promotion at work, which will help him move up in the company. Yippee! The only down side is he will have to work the weekend shift. We weren't sure which shift he would have to take and it looked like he would still be on a day shift at first, but that abrubtly changed. We still feel that it is an answer from the Lord, so we are praying for his blessings to be with us. Jessica also applied for a music teaching job at a new middle school. We are hoping that she gets hired. She would be teaching choir and band for sure. It would be great experience. If she doesn't get hired then she will continue subbing for the district.

Kurtis lost his first tooth on the last day of school. The toothfairy gave him a dollar. That was more than I ever got for my first teeth. The toothfairy must be getting richer. He has been having fun this summer and rode on a plane by himself to San Diego for the first time this month. After spending a week in San Diego with Grammie and friends, he will be going up to Hurricane to spend a week with Grandma and Grandpa and then he will be off on a family camping trip for 5 days. Talk about fun!

Sean is cute as ever and in the terrible twos. He knows what he shouldn't play with, shouldn't touch and shouldn't do, but he does it anyway. He tries to get mom's attention by doing things he shouldn't. He really tries Mom's patience. He is talking more now, so he screams less because he can communicate more effectively. Mom is missing Kurtis and the fact that he keeps Sean occupied.

We hope you all are well! Have a wonderful summer!

Love,
Jess, Jake, Kurtis, Sean and Rufus

Cut. Sew. Repeat.

Dear Family and Friends,
My sister-in-law Allison has just opened up her online boutique of the cutest handmade items! I highly recommend anything on her site and her quality is really good! I'm so lucky I'm family because sometimes I get homemade gifts for presents! That's right, be jealous! Anyway. Here is the link to her site. www.cutsewrepeat.etsy.com Allison is also doing a give away on her blog so check it out! http://browningfamily5.blogspot.com.

Love,
Jessica

Still Here

Just wanted to let you all know that we are still alive here in Flagstaff. Our lives have been extra busy, so the blog has fallen by the wayside. We are still working, playing and growing together. In Feb. Jacob and I went to Ft. Worth TX for a conference. We had a great time and enjoyed some time alone. Kurtis is ready for spring break and I wish I could say we were going somewhere exciting, but alas we are not. Anyway. I hope you all are well, and I will try to be better about posting more often. I'll try to post pics tomorrow.

MS Walk 2009

Dear Family and Friends,
Most of you know that I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis about 18 months ago. If you haven't heard the news, SURPRISE! Anyway. My wonderful sister-in-law, Allison, did the MS walk at Legoland last year in my honor and is putting together a team to walk again this year. The walk is at Legoland again and it is on Sunday April 26th. I am coming down from Flagstaff to be a part of her team and walk for those who are unable to do so!

Although I am managing my MS naturally, and am doing quite well, we still need to find a cure. Would you please sponsor me in this walk to cure this disease? Any and all donations would be greatly appreciated. My personal fundraising goal is $1,000. If all you could give was $10, I would only need 100 people for me to reach my goal. You can sponsor me by visiting my walker webpage: www.mswalk.com/jessicabarnum. If you would like to join our team and walk with us that would be awesome too. You can join the team by going to: www.mswalk.com\bellasoprano.

Thank you all for your kind support and I hope to see you on the walk! With your help we will beat this disease!

Love,
Jessica

Sorry!

Sorry I haven't posted any new pics. The computer with all of our pics is in the shop getting fixed, I hope and our desktop is so messed up I don't dare put any more pictures on it. I will post some as soon as I can.

Irish Spring Soap

Kurtis has been developing some bad habits lately. Mainly lying and the use of bad words. Most of these bad words he picked up from the movie Goonies. It's rated PG and it had been so long since I had seen it, I didn't remember just how bad the language was. Needless to say that movie is now off limits. Now don't judge me for letting him watch that movie, because I know some of you are, I wasn't sitting there watching the movie with him. Had I been watching it, I would have turned the movie off. So stop judging me. Anyway. He picked up a certain phrase from the movie. He would say, "What the h*ll?" We talked to him the first time we heard him say it and told him that he shouldn't say that phrase. Now we had had a problem early in 2008 with him saying "Oh my G*d!" And at one point I told him that if he said that phrase one more time I would wash his mouth out with soap. He said "Oh my G*d!" one more time. So I dragged him into the bathroom to wash his mouth out. We have the liquid soap that comes in a pump. Those soaps are WAY too mild. Because as I started to wash his mouth out Kurtis says, "Hmm. It's not so bad." GREAT! It's not so bad, meaning that my punishment didn't work. So when he started saying, "What the h*ll?" I wasn't quite sure what to do that would make him NEVER want to say it again. I tried a couple things, but they just didn't have the impact. Then an epiphany came. I thought about the worst soap you would never want in your mouth, Irish Spring Bar Soap. I gave him warning about the next time he used that phrase that I would wash his mouth out with soap. He was probably thinkin', "No biggie." Little did he know. He did use the phrase again. I brought him up to my bathroom and got out the Irish Spring. He HATED every second of it! And afterwards he kept saying, "Mom (gag), I can still taste it in my mouth! (gag)" I told him the taste was to remind him to NEVER use those words again. And he hasn't (yet). Mission Accomplished!

A Word of Warning

Please, PLEASE! Learn from my experience. If you have a flat screen LCD or Plasma Screen TV you need to read this! A couple of weeks ago, I was fixing lunch for Kurtis. He asked if he could watch a movie while eating his lunch at the table. I said yes, so Kurtis went to turn on the TV. When he did, I noticed the screen was completely black and upon closer inspection I noticed a crack in the liquid crystal. Kurtis had a new styraphome plane with a plastic tip that he had been flying around the house that morning. When I saw the crack I knew what had caused it. I asked him if his plane had hit the TV. He asked, "Will you be mad?" I said, "I'll be more mad if you lie to me." He told me that it had hit the screen while he had been playing. I was so angry, not at him, but at the money that TV had cost us. It was like flushing that money down the drain, because if the liquid crystal in an LCD screen is cracked, it costs more to repair than if you were to buy a brand new TV. I read the manual and found out that an LCD screen is so fragile that if you even push too hard on the screen, like when you're cleaning it, it will crack. So I am passing on this knowledge to you to save you time and money. Of course I checked with our manufacturer, but kids aren't covered under any kind of warranty. To protect your TV, I would suggest investing in a screen protector. They are quite resonable, between $100-300 depending on the size of your TV. You can do a google search for LCD screen protectors or you could try one site that we found. www.tvarmor.com