Monday, August 29, 2011

rain, rain, go away

i've made it through more than i thought i was capable of this year. now i can add hurricane to that list.

let me preface by saying that i absolutely HATE storms. or should i say, i hate storms when i am experiencing them alone. i'm not ashamed to admit that i was the teenager who still ran into my parents room during extra scary middle-of-the-night storms. for me there's a comfort in being near other people during those moments. safety in numbers or something like that.

despite all that i found myself alone in my house late saturday night when irene started really pounding our area. i did choose to be alone. my entire family graciously offered up their spare bedrooms for me so i didn't have to ride it out alone. do they know me or what? haha! but i turned them down. i guess i was feeling brave or something. all was fine. i enjoyed my quiet evening at home and i was in the last 2 minutes of a cheesy hallmark movie (right when he was about to declare his undying love) and then it came on- the dreaded emergency broadcast system stating that there was a tornado warning for our county. i grabbed my pillow, a blanket, a candle, my phone and my laptop (priorities people) and traipsed down to the basement until the threat passed. by then the power went out and it was eerily dark. did i mention i don't really like the dark either?

i managed to put on my big girl panties though and suck it up. i told myself that this is a year of discovering just how strong i am and that i am capable of more than i imagined (with God's help of course). i stuck some earplugs in because the pounding wind and rain was so loud and went to sleep. when i woke up the power was still out, but i made it through just fine. add that one to the list of ever-growing new experiences.

over 24 hours later and my house is still out of power. it's ok though. it could be much worse. and i finally took my family up on their offer and slept at my sister's last night.

<---- waking up to this face is the best.

praying for those who were really impacted by this storm. it's been a crazy weather week for us east-coasters. looking forward to a week full of sunshine after all that rain.




much love,

 

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

update and ww vlog

it's been almost 8 full months since i jumped on the weight watchers bandwagon and things sure have changed... mainly me. i feel like i have grown so much during this process and discovered things about myself that i knew were there but that i had hidden under layers of shame and fear. with each goal and milestone reached i feel myself becoming more of the person i'm supposed to be... the person i've always wanted to be. if weight's been a struggle most of your adult life (or even your whole life) then you can probably understand. it's hard to explain but i guess i just feel more free... less of that trapped-in-your-body-feeling that i felt for so long.

i could probably go on and on about that whole subject but we'll save that for another post! my sister kate and i were hanging out yesterday and decided we should really do another vlog since it had been... oh months since our last one. we had to record it twice due to user error so this one starts off with me cracking up... haha... this is real life people. enjoy!


Weight Watchers vlog 3 from Katie Balla on Vimeo.

as always- thanks for the support and encouragement. i'm convinced social media has been a major motivator for me in all of this. knowing i have others alongside me going through this and getting the cheers and love from all of you keeps me going! last week i posted this photo on facebook and the response was overwhelming. i'm so humbled to be surrounded by such awesome people. seriously. you all rock.


much love,

 

Sunday, August 21, 2011

struggling-to-stay-silent sunday

this week i
  • walked the mall with my SIL... we are all eager to meet the new baby boy!
  • discovered my love for fiber one brownies (only 2pts) and then was sad when i went to get more last night and the grocery store was out! for shame!
  • got crafty... i made a mason jar soap dispenser, toilet paper roll wall art and a painted canvas with chipboard letters. so excited to have the creative juices flowing again!
  • got to have sonic with my dear friend jenny after a fun night at the outlets where i scored the most beautiful duvet at the PB outlet... hope to show you that soon!
  • saw a rainbow... i have been praying for a rainbow sighting... these past few weeks have been very emotionally taxing and i needed a visual reminder of God's promise and boy did he give it to me! one of the biggest rainbows i've ever seen. thanks jesus!
happy sunday!

 

ps- i redid my blog last night so if you're reading through google reader, pop on over and let me know what you think :)

Monday, August 15, 2011

happy birthday lyryn!

today is a special day... today my best friend turns 29 (which also means my 29th birthday is right around the corner... yikes).

i've been lucky enough to have lyryn in my life for over 11 years now and her friendship has been a gift from the beginning. i know God brought us both together right when we needed it the most. some friends come and go, but lyryn isn't one of them. she is one of the most loyal people i know and will stand by you through thick and thin. she doesn't let anyone stand in the way of the people she loves and i admire that in her so much.


on friday night we had a girls night out to celebrate lyryn and it was a blast. honestly going into it i wasn't sure how i felt about it. i don't go out much and usually prefer staying at home but it felt so good to get out. it was especially fun to curl my hair, put on a cute dress and hit the town with some incredible ladies. i needed that so much... i think we all did. we laughed... we even cried... but most of all we celebrated life. we're all in different seasons of it but yet still find so many things to relate on. it's  a beautiful thing.


so here's to you lyryn and another incredible year ahead! thank you for being there with me through the ups and downs in life... for believing in me... for loving me. you are an amazing friend, sister, wife, mother and so much more. i love you forever and ever!