What are you craving?

I am a big fan of the radio station K Love. It's positive and encouraging. Not too long ago they had this lady promoting her new book.





Listening to Lysa (the author of Made to Crave) talk about her "weight" struggles instantly reminded me of my own struggles. How many times have I promised myself that Monday was "The Day" to start dieting? I decided to give Made to Crave a try. It's not a "diet" book. There are no recipes, no workout schedules but there are chapters filled with teachings on how to satisfy your deepest desire with God.

I started the Made to Crave Bible study last night with a friend. After we both decided that we want to look cute in the same pants Lysa was wearing, we had a good conversation about why we eat what we eat. And why we feel like we need it.

I can only speak for myself when I say this but.... I love food. Yes, I get that people love food, but I really love food. Like I get excited about food. I love going out to eat and I could easily list 10, no probably 20 foods that I absolutely adore. And that is so wrong on so many levels. I am tired of feeling uncomfortable in my own skin. I am tired of thinking about food and hearing people talk about how "fat' they are (when they're not). One of the phrases that Lysa wrote about in her book is sticking with me. "We crave what we eat." Simple, yet so true. I am going to have to train myself to crave healthier foods. Difficult, yet not impossible.

I am not sure I could limit my cravings to just food though. The list of "things" that I crave is a mile long and much too embarrassing to write about. I am actually ashamed of many them. So I am thinking that I not only need a physical diet but a spiritual one as well.

And so begins my journey for I was made to crave Him.

Progress

I love the word progress. When I think of progress I think of hope. There is lots of progress being made in the Hickok house and that leaves me feeling happy and hopeful. This past weekend was wonderful. There are so many neat little things happening. I really feel like we accomplished so much. So much that I needed to blog about it; even though I should be in bed sleeping resting up for my 4:30 a.m. wake up call to hit the gym.

That's my first progress report that I want to share. Tomorrow I am starting week 3 of couch to 5K. I am making progress with my three times a week walking/jogging workouts. And it feels so good. Yes, 4:30 a.m. is wicked early, but on the way home from the gym I feel so good for going. I am making progress which gives me hope that someday I will look like this again.



John feels really good about making progress on our addition. He spent the weekend putting up dry wall. I decided that he would probably get much more done if I stepped in to supervise. Not really. I only lasted with one part of the ceiling. But I was glad that I could help him with that.



Noah is making huge progress on the potty. He is doing so awesome letting us know when he has to go. I think I found a treat that motivates him which really helps with the whole potty training business. We are really excited for him and for us. The money will start growing back on the trees now that he is in underpants.



Eli is making lots of progress with crawling. We are so excited that he is on the move. He loves getting into E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G! Most of the time he is content playing with Noah's toys. Noah isn't a huge fan of this, but he is making progress!

Thankful

This week I was met with the worst sinus infection. It was terrible, and I felt like such a baby. I really wanted to stay in bed all day (correction - all week) and sleep, but that doesn't happen very often when you are mom to these two adorable guys.



J Cakes was out of town which made matters worse. Gone are the days of laying on the couch being waited on by mom and dad. However some really awesome people came to the rescue, and I am beyond thankful for their kind gestures. So rather than complain about how awful I feel I am so thankful that God sent these angels to take care of me while my husband was away.

The first angel arrived some time this morning and left chicken soup on my front steps. Thanks Mom M. for the soup. It was perfect at lunch today.

The next angel arrived at 3:45 p.m. this afternoon with a Frosty in hand. Thank you Amanda. I couldn't suck that thing down fast enough. Am I a selfish mom for not sharing it with Noah? What he doesn't know won't hurt him.

At 5:30 p.m an angel bringing pulled pork, fresh rolls and salad arrived. It was so yummy! Thank you so much Suki. I am really sorry that we weren't able to come for dinner tonight, but I really appreciate that you cared enough to feed to me anyways. However, I was feeling a little slighted that my favorite 6th grader didn't join you.

More angels arrived at 6:30 p.m. to help bathe the boys and play with them. Thanks Franklin and Mom M. I really appreciate the help and enjoyed the company.

I would be remiss it I didn't mention the text messages and phone calls from friends checking in to make sure that I was okay. You know who you are. Thank you.

Most importantly, thank you Jesus for the grace that you have shown me this week. It was a tough one, but the antibiotics have kicked in, and I am starting to feel well again. Now it's my turn to earn my wings.