Happy 1st Birthday!

One year ago I was in the delivery room for the birth of our son. It was the most miraculous day of my life. Ray and I stood by the bedside of the most beautiful and strongest girl I know as she gave birth to the most perfect little boy. I will never forget the hours leading up to that moment. So many emotions and thoughts of nervousness and excitement running through my head. The baby we have been waiting for was finally here! I feel so blessed that Jacob's birth mom chose us to be his parents and that we have a good relationship his birth family.
In this one short year he has brought so much joy into our lives. Jacob is such a funny little boy and has the cutest smile and laugh. He is walking a little when he wants to. His favorite toy is his stuffed dog that he got for Christmas and his favorite person (besides mom and dad) is his cousin Kaitlynn. He loves being outside and exploring new things. He jabbers a lot and makes lots of fun sounds but doesn't really say any words yet (still not sure if he is actually saying "Dada" or if that is just one of his many sounds). He can crawl up and down the stairs like a champ. He loves being chased and tickled. He has a mischievous little smile when he knows he is doing something he shouldn't. He can be a little stinker sometimes and can throw a good little tantrum when he gets told "no". We love this little guy so much and he is loved by so many.
Happy 1st Birthday Jacob!

We're Back!

It has been a looooong time since we have posted on our blog but we are back and will be filling you in on the last year and a half of our lives and what we are doing now. Check back for updates :)

Fit to Fat to Fit

Fit to Fat to Fit has been a huge part of our lives in 2015. Ray applied for the reality TV show in late 2014 and after some skype interviews and psych evaluations he was selected to be part of the show. He was teamed up with an amazing trainer, JJ, and knew instantly that they would be really good friends. But what Ray didn't know was that for the first half of this journey JJ would be gaining 60 pounds as an experiment to better understand overweight clients. This was a shocker to Ray and was pretty disappointing that  he was not able to see JJ and get training or advise from him, or even start changing his life the way he was ready to for 4 months.
Well Ray did it anyway and started working out on his own and eating healthier foods. He changed his life for the better! By the time he was able to meet up with JJ he had already lost 54 lbs. He has now lost over 150 lbs and is active and loves life!
Here is some behind the scenes footage that was produced by Haugen Creative who is a friend of ours and not affiliated with A&E so this footage did not make it to the show. 

Here are some of the media spots JJ and Ray were able to do in New York!
Inside Edition
Good Day NY
Entertainment Tonight
Nightline
KSL.com article
Fit to Fat to Fit experience podcast

I am so proud of Ray and his determination to make this change and become a better version of himself. I will forever be grateful for JJ and his amazing wife Erika who taught us so much about health and fitness and provided a way for us to be healthier and happier.
~Julie

Happy Halloween 2015

Halloween kicks off the holiday season for me. It's a good excuse to get together with family and just have a fun time together.

Stewart family Indoor Trick-or-Treat party

 

 

Captain America and Super Girl

 

Julie's nieces trick-or-treating at Grandpa's house

Do It Anyway

My life has changed so much these last 9 months it's difficult to properly articulate. I began this year knowing I wasn't the future father I wanted to be. In spite of desperately wanting to become a father I was not in a position to help that happen. I had to face the fact that at nearly 400lbs I wasn't necessarily an ideal prospect for some looking to place a child for adoption. That wasn't easy to face or admit but I did. I received the chance of a lifetime and started working with a trainer. I put up signs in my house to remind myself of what I was working for. Julie decided to join me in my weight loss goals and we began to eat healthier and follow a meal plan from my trainer. It turns out eating healthy and exercising work! No magic pills or miracle apparatus was used; just a decision to start taking advantage of life and a whole lot of sweat! You can see the difference in some of the pictures here in the blog. To over-simplify I've learned so much about myself and my own abilities. I've learned the magic in pushing myself beyond what I thought I could do. There is a power in deciding to keep going when we think our tank is empty. I feel like I'm becoming not just a good person, which I was before losing weight. I'm becoming the person God would have me be. It's exciting, intimidating, empowering, humbling, and all sorts of other things all at once. I'm learning to put long-term goals in front of short-term wants as the phrase, "do it anyway" has become my daily mantra. I'm not quite done with this transformational journey of mine but I'm over-the-moon happy with how far I've come so far. Life is better this way!

P.S. Julie has lost a bunch of weight too! Just look at that gorgeous wife of mine!!!

Ray

Labor Day 2015

It seams like this year is flying by! It is already Labor Day and we were both lucky enough to have the day off. We spent the day enjoying the beautiful weather and great outdoors of Utah. We started the day by driving to Park City to join some friends for a hike. Then lunch and since we were close we had to stop by the outlet mall and visit the Nike store for some new shoes. Our plan was to go to Soldier Hollow and hike around there but we didn't know that a sheep dog competition was happening that day. So plan B was to go hike Stewart Falls. We did Stewart Falls last year and it was pretty difficult for us. We stopped to rest a lot and it took us a lot longer than expected. We did it again in the spring and it was easier but we still took a few breaks. This time despite the crowded trail, we cruised through it. When no one was in our way we ran the trail and made it to the falls faster than we ever have. It was so exhilarating to see how much stronger and healthier we are. (The new shoes are pretty great too!)

 

Best Grandparents Ever!

Ray's parents brought their old beat up car to the family reunion and let the kids paint it with their own designs. The kids had a blast and it was fun to see their different personalities represented on the car. It is quite a sight to see this car driving around town!