Soul-filled Sunday ~ 7/27/2025

Scripture Memory Verse

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."

Hebrews 11:1

Prayer Requests

~My Dad is visibly perking up after his aortic valve replacement!  His color is much better and his energy is returning.  He goes back to the cardiologist for a post-op visit this week so praying all is well.

~Laken moves into her dorm room in 3 short weeks.  She is getting nervous about classes and meeting so many new people.  I pray that she and her roommate hit it off and become great friends.  Prayers for her, for this mama and for patience during the preparations for move-in day!

~My Bible study time.  I didn't get up any earlier this week but I did get Bible reading time in while drinking my morning caffeine.  Instead of sitting at the table bemoaning the fact that I wasn't still in bed, I've been reading from the Book of Psalms on my phone's Bible app.  I've also been trying to make some evening Bible study time as well.  Prayers are working!!!

~Prayer of thanks that Kaylee had a safe work trip to Orlando, FL.  She flew out on Monday evening and came back Friday afternoon.  Knowing that my baby was up in the sky flying was a bit anxiety producing but she is now safely home!

~Our Country, and our Leaders.

For Your Listening Pleasure

This is a new song by Leanna Crawford.  So beautiful!  Enjoy :)

Blessings,

Colletta

My Mounjaro Journey ~ Update #2 ~ My First Stall?? ~ 7/25/2025

Well, I knew it would come eventually...My first stall.

If you can call one week of not losing weight a stall.  It was actually a gain but a very SMALL gain of 0.2 lbs for this week.

I have consistently lost weight each of the first 5 weeks I've been on Mounjaro 2.5.  I can feel that the 2.5 hasn't been working as well to curb my hunger and food noise though.  I've been having to fight off cravings and getting hungry before bed and I can definitely tell in the mornings that it is time for breakfast.

I talked to my PCP and she said that as long as I'm feeling good (side effect wise) on the 2.5 that it would be best for me to go up to 5.0.  She sent in my next script as Mounjaro 5.0 and I really, really wanted to start it today.  However, my PCP wanted me to finish out the 2 pens of 2.5 that I have before going to the 5.0.

I guess I'll suck it up and listen to my PCP.  I'll just have to work even harder to see a loss on the scale.

The bad thing is the timing.  I'll be taking my first 5.0 jab the Friday before Laken's college move in day on the following Thursday.  I really don't want to be super icky or feeling sick for that.  I'm hoping that since it will be almost a week on the 5.0 that any side effects will have worn off by then.

So to sum it up:  This is my 7th week on Mounjaro 2.5 and in the first 6 weeks I've lost a total of 14.4 lbs.  That averages out to 2.4 lbs per week.  I have to admit that is a pretty good number even though that gain this morning got me down a bit.

I'm going to try to up my game this week by being more mindful of my eating habits.  I've been consistently under my daily calorie allotment for a calorie deficit but I could definitely be making better choices.

Maybe I've been spoiled by losing 14.4 lbs in 6 weeks and now the real work begins.  What do you think?  Does a gain of 0.2 lbs constitute as a stall or just a ho-hum week?

Let me know what you think and if you're on a journey of your own.  I'd love to know all about it!

Until the next update...

Blessings,

Colletta

Working Woman Wednesday ~ 7/23/2025

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope no one is offended by this but I've been feeling like an impostor for the past 2 years.  In fact, this feeling is one of the reasons I haven't been posting much for the past little while.

Let me explain.

For many, many years I was a stay-at-home-wife/mom.  AND I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!

However, about 2 years ago, I started working outside the home for financial reasons, mostly.  Kaylee was married with a home of her own and Laken was well able to care for herself at 16 years old.  The mom-guilt was and is still there to a point but I've tried to make peace with it especially now that Laken is heading off to college in a few short weeks.

I worked full-time and then part-time.  I loved working part-time but it just wasn't feasible for me to continue doing so.  In April I studied for the Pennsylvania Property and Casualty Insurance 

exam and passed!

May 1, 2025 I started my new full-time job working at the front desk of a State Farm Agency.  It is fast paced, challenging and I'm learning something new everyday.

Now, back to the "impostor" comment...

For years and years, I participated in the Happy Homemaker Monday linkup hosted by Sandra at Diary of a SAHM. (Thank you, Sandra, from the bottom of my heart!)  And while I know in my heart that I'm still a homemaker, I depend on the hubby and others in the family for quite a bit more of the homemaking tasks than I used to.

So, I've decided to revamp my homemaker post into a Working Woman Wednesday post.  I hope this inspires me (and others) to know that it's OK to work outside the home, be a mom and a wife and still have interests of my own.

 I'd love to hear your thoughts on the topic but please be kind.

~~~~~

Last Weekend:

On Saturday, we went shopping to look for dorm bedding.  The bed is a Twin XL and Laken's color theme is light blue, white and pink.  That made for quite the scavenger hunt!  We ended up finding a set of sheets at Target that are white with blue roses that she liked.  As for the ALL white comforter, we ordered it on Amazon with a delivery date that is way too close to move-in day for my comfort!

Sunday was spent at Church and at home getting some things done around the house.  I desperately needed to get the clean clothes put away in my closet.  I've been making piles in front of the closet and I couldn't stand it anymore!

This Week's Notables:

~Working Monday-Friday 9a-5p

~Laken has an eye appointment Wednesday.

~Call in refills on prescriptions (priority)

~Make the hubby an appointment for his yearly checkup that he missed in March.

In the Kitchen:

~Now that we've discovered that Laken has a gluten intolerance, we have to be a lot more cognizant of our cooking ingredients.  Thankfully, there are a lot of gluten free options at the store.  It also helps that Laken LOVES fruits and veggies (especially broccoli:  whose kid is she anyway????)  So while the grocery bill is a bit higher ( those gluten free items aren't cheap), we're coping and hopefully learning to thrive!

In the Craft Basket:

I've actually picked my crochet hook back up and have been working on a throw pillow for Laken dorm room.  Her theme (for the time being) is pink and blue.  She saw a throw pillow in the background of a show with Granny squares (my specialty!) and asked if I would make her a version of the pillow.  I've almost completed one side of the pillow and have started the squares for the second side.

Currently reading:

I started reading "Line of Fire" by Taylor S. Newport Friday evening during Reading Sprints hosted by Katie at Paperbacks and Ponytails on YouTube.  Katie actually recommended this book to me and I was excited to find that it is on Kindle Unlimited.  I downloaded it immediately after reading the blurb.  I'm hoping to actually take time each day to read at least 1 chapter.

On the TV:

The Amateur (movie on Disney+/Hulu)

Picture(s) from the Camera

This is Ellie.  I can't remember if I introduced you to our newest family member or not!  She's a spit-fire and likes to bite toes!  I have to keep my feet under the covers at night or I get a very rude awakening :)

Weekend Plans:

~Spend the entire Saturday at home (remains to be seen!)

~Housework

~Paint the deck and my porch swing if the weather cooperates

~Declutter the "abyss" (storage closet) if the weather doesn't cooperate

~Finish cleaning off my desk area

~Hymn sing Sunday night at Church

I hope you're having a great week!  Please let me know if you can think of anything else I can add to this, hopefully, weekly post :)

Blessings,

Colletta

Soul-filled Sunday ~ 7/20/2025

Scripture Memory Verse

"Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."

Isaiah 41:10

Prayer Requests

~My Dad had his aortic valve replacement this past Wednesday.  They were able to do the replacement using the TAVR procedure and did NOT have to do open-heart surgery!  Praise God!  He came home Thursday afternoon and is doing well.  He is a bit worn out which is to be expected this soon after the surgery.  Your continued prayers for him would be appreciated!

~Laken moves into her dorm room in 4 short weeks.  Prayers for her, for this mama and for patience during the preparations for move-in day!

~My Bible study time.  I'm having a hard time focusing in the evening for my Bible study.  I guess I could try to get up earlier in the morning and have my quiet time with God then.  It is worth considering.  When do you have your study time?

~Our Country, and our Leaders.

For Your Listening Pleasure

Make sure you turn up your volume for this song!  Enjoy :)

Blessings,

Colletta

My Mounjaro Journey ~ Update #1 ~ 7/18/2025

On June 13th, I gave myself my very first Mounjaro shot.

I had a check-up with my PCP on June 12th during which I spoke to her regarding my A1C, weight and overall health.  After much consideration and talking about the side-effects vs benefits, I decided to have a prescription for Mounjaro sent in.  My PCP also gave me a sample box of the medication to get started on until my prescription went through.  

Laken had New Student Orientation at WVU on the 13th so I decided to wait until after that to actually start the medication.  That day at the NSO solidified my decision to get my weight and health under control.

If anyone is familiar with WVU, there are many, many steps and stairways.  It was hot and at one point, on a rather long climb, I basically told the hubby and Laken to just leave me behind because I COULD NOT keep up.  I was ashamed, embarrassed and disappointed to be dragging them down.  I feel like I ruined the whole day for everyone.  (BTW, they DID NOT leave me behind and I eventually made it to the top!)

When we got home, I gave myself my first shot.

As of this morning (5 weeks into my journey) I have lost 14.6 lbs.

So far the only side effect I've felt that bothered me was a massive headache on Tuesday, June 17th.  Other than that, I've had the occasional acid re-flux and queasy stomach.  But again, it didn't really bother me too terribly.

I don't know how often I'll be posting updates.  At least monthly but possibly more often if anyone is interested in weekly results.

Let me know what you think and if you're on a journey of your own, I'd love to know all about it!

Blessings,

Colletta