August 2024 Scripture Writing Plan -Attitude

Posted on July 29, 2024 by Helen

Hello everyone! I hope this finds you all well and enjoying a great summer.

My spring had me super busy outside putting in a new garden and tending to yard work, but I’ve been less active this month due to a few different reasons.

First was a nasty arthritis flare (Before this, I didn’t know that was a thing!) in my left knee that had me in a LOT of pain. To the degree that my orthopedic doctor (who had just given me gel injections at the end of June) ordered an ultrasound.

The ultrasound didn’t find a cyst or anything concerning more than the arthritis, as the doctor had thought perhaps it was a Baker’s cyst or something. The ultrasound doctor told me she thought it was just an arthritis flare. I’d always thought arthritis was just…there, causing pain especially with weather changes, but otherwise just there causing pain, and stiffness 🙂

I don’t know, I find it a little odd that it caused me SUCH a crazy amount of intense pain that came on so suddenly, but it’s just an “arthritis flare”. But either way, it’s a lot better now, thank the Lord!

Also, my son graduated high school in May (yay!) and has been home all the time stuck in the house with mommy (remember, he has autism…) and has been growing steadily bored (I suspect…he is nonverbal and doesn’t tell me) as his behavior has been keeping me on my toes and my nerves frazzled (to say the least). He’s normally such a very good boy. He starts dayhab on August 6th though, so boy am I looking forward to having some time to get things done and grocery shop alone 🙂

I know I’ll worry myself to bits about him starting at a new place; new people; new teacher, aids, and bus driver (and no more driving him to school and back twice a day like all last year, yay!!), and new individuals (non-typical folks like my kiddo…and yes he will always be my “kiddo” :), my “baby” in fact! lol) of all ages, not just his age group.

So anyway…more posting to come for my Ponderings of My Predicaments shortly.

The scripture writing theme for August landed in my lap with a thud. A HARD thud. A thud the Lord gave me with a heavy reminder of my attitude.

An unbelieving Facebook friend has been challenging my opinion about the Olympics 2024 opening ceremony. I (as many of you have as well, no doubt) found it to be appalling and evil. I had to keep biting my tongue (ok, holding my fingers back …same thing 🙂 ) from really typing what my flesh was sending to my brain about his standing up for such wickedness.

Also, Evan being home all summer and his boredom has led him to watching a lot of YouTube videos. He enjoys watching videos about his favorite toys, chief among them being the See ‘n Say. There’s a channel from a young man (in my anger I caught myself referring to him as “an idiot”, and the Lord gently reminded me that He shed His blood for him too) who enjoys destroying things and videoing himself doing it for his YouTube channel. He takes a hammer to See ‘n Says, drops them off balconies , you get the picture. His entire channel is about destroying things (mostly toys) and videoing it.

He also spells out words on the Word Whammer-type toys that children shouldn’t see at their tender age!

His speech is just as bad. I reported him to YouTube the first time (not that it did any good, thanks a lot YouTube) after hearing him saying (and Evan hearing), “A, B, C, D, E, F, G….I will ki11 my family”. Images of mass sh00tings (and yes I changed the letters there so this wouldn’t get flagged) comes to mind every time I see the behavior of this guy!

If you happen to have time, would you go to his channel HERE and report him to YouTube? Not out of spite, but so that other kids who do a search for a particular toy doesn’t find his videos and get corrupted by them. In the meantime pray for him as well.

So I first started titling this plan, “behavior towards unbelievers”. Then realized quickly that we are to be cautious of our behavior to everyone; and as it started coming together, I changed the theme title to, “attitude”. Attitudes towards each other, the lost, and ourselves too (I was softly reminded by the Holy Spirit).

We are the only Jesus many people will ever see, I’m reminded. We are to be loving, kind, and humble like Jesus is. So “attitude” it is. And with that…here is what the Lord gave me for August!

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I’m so thankful that so many of you are enjoying and spiritually benefiting from these monthly scripture writing plans! I love putting them together for you knowing that you find them useful and uplifting! Use these passages to write out the scriptures and grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Click on the image below to pull up the full-sized PDF file for printing –>

I usually print these out on 28 pound white paper (or 32 pound paper is even better) and just stick them right into my planner or journal. The heavier the paper, the less chance it will tear out of your binder or planner by accident and helps resist bleeding or ghosting from your pens or markers. It helps the page turn easier too.

For planner stickers, etc: If you choose to print these out on full-size (letter) sticker paper. I use these here. They’re priced great and you can write on them easily. They are good enough quality for my needs. If you want a top-quality sticker paper look for these or clear vinyl ones here. (Though not all pens or markers will write well on the clear ones). If you don’t want to use sticker paper, you can print them on card stock or regular printer paper and glue them down. Honestly, the sticker paper is the most economical way, however for everyday planning stickers. Regardless of the type.

Going through a lot of ink printing out planner stickers? Do like I did and enlist in the HP Instant Ink program! I’ve saved so much money on ink since I did several years ago. They have different plans, but the one I’m in is the plan that lets me print up to 300 pages worth of ink for just over $11 per month. That’s regardless of the amount of ink on the page. I love printing out pictures on photo paper. I fit 4 4×6-inch photos on one sheet of photo paper. Imagine the amount of photos you can print at four pages per one page and the cost is the same for a full page of photo ink as it is for one dot. It goes by the page, not the amount of ink! You can choose lesser pages for a lower rate, but I do a lot of printing between coupons, planner stickers and other things. Click on the image here to check it out! –>

My 2024 New Weight Loss Efforts Have Begun!

Posted on July 12, 2024 by Helen

Hello friends 🙂

This is the first of what I hope to be many installments about weight loss, nutrition, and anything that affects either one along the way.

It’s high time I expand my blog a bit, and since I’m on a new weight loss journey, I decided to share the journey with you, as I mentioned in my previous post. For several reasons, really: accountability for me, inspiration for those on the same journey as myself, to (hopefully) bring glory to God for guiding me along the way, step by step, and for His many blessings.

HISTORY

Here’s a picture share for a little history. Highest weight, till the day of this posting:

I shared my past weight battle here in my video HERE.

NEW JOURNEY

This NEW journey (as I’ve fought this battle my entire life from teenage years to now) began in January of this year, as so many of my most successful efforts have. I’ll fill you in on it chronologically 🙂

The past four years or so ago, I was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid. I was put on levothyroxine to manage that and through the last four years my doctor had to keep increasing the dose as lab results showed that the levels were still way too low.

This past January I got my eating (and my brain -my resolve) on track and got busy trying my hardest to lose weight and get healthier.

January came and went…February…March…April. I lost a whopping 8 (eight) pounds from the beginning of January till the beginning of May. Two pounds a MONTH. So at my recent yearly checkup, I talked to my primary care physician and told her how hard I’d been working and the little results I achieved. She gave me a referral to Akron General Hospital/Cleveland Clinic’s weight loss clinic.

When the appointment (virtual) came, the doctor was my previous primary care doctor who had left to go into obesity medicine, so we were already acquainted with each other. That made it such an easier talk and I felt much more comfortable as I have always liked her.

The appointment began with her advising me on fat and fiber (been there, done that…) and gut health. Ok now…I’m familiar with researching “Leaky Gut Syndrome” when my son’s autism became apparent. But I’d never heard it in relation to weight loss. I was intrigued.

I’ll link you to more info on that HERE.

When I filled out the forms for the clinic before hand, I had to tick a box either for surgical or non-surgical methods. I chose non-surgical as I’d already had the Roux-En-Y gastric bypass about 20 years ago. I’d lost 157 pounds then. You see my video about the history of all that HERE.

I felt myself thinking, “Is this all this appointment is going to come to? Just information?” But then she asked me, “Have you ever considered injectable weight loss medications?” I explained that they made me nervous because my friend Sherril had taken Phen-Phen years ago and it resulted in serious heart problems she suffered for years and that she had passed away a few years ago (she sang at my husband’s funeral almost five years ago now).

She went on to explain the improvements in obesity medicine since then and explained to me about MOUNJARO (tirzepatide, a GLP-1 drug) and how that works. Again, I’ll refer you to HERE to understand that. She told me it’s a newer drug than Ozempic and how she felt it worked much better as it has two more hormones in it than Ozempic does. Hormones your stomach is supposed to create naturally and many obese patients are lacking in that. GLP-1 is Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a hormone that helps regulate blood sugar, digestion and appetite.

So I went to the pharmacy and picked up the prescription and came home and put it in the refrigerator and hopped online to research it all as thoroughly as I could.

I took my first 2.5 mg dose a few days later. It was May 6th, 2024. It’s injectable, but it’s a pen, not a needle and vial and it couldn’t be easier to inject. Even a squeamish person could do it.

A month went by and it was time to increase to the 5 mg. dose, but the whole country was stuck under backorders of it due to shortages. I was able to remain on the 2.5 for three weeks then the 5 mg was finally available.

I’ve been on the 5 mg. dose for three weeks now, and I just got a message from my doctor today that she had sent in the prescription for the next higher dose, 7.5. Soon afterwards, I got a text from the pharmacy that it was ready for pick up. That brings me to this moment as I type. I’ll be picking up my prescription in a few hours. Tomorrow is my normal injection day so I’ll start on the 7.5!

I’m thrilled about that, because in my research recently, I discovered that the 2.5 mg dose and the 5 mg. dose both are introductory doses to make sure your body can handle it. Then from 7.5 and up to 15 mg is the weight loss doses.

I have lost 27 1/2 pounds since January, however. (Eight pounds of that before the Mounjaro).

Mounjaro is supposed to suppress your appetite, and BOY has it. I have to remind myself to eat and I usually don’t really feel like it when I do. I’ve had to increase my protein intake and fiber (both a necessity when on Mounjaro especially) to avoid your weight loss being muscle weight and not true fat weight.

Although I had sworn off TikTok, I found a lot bigger Mounjaro community there and a lot more videos that educated me about it, so I’m active there now as well.

My journey continues…

Sincerely, Sapphire (Helen)