New Beginnings

  This weekend has already been a very exciting one and it has only just begun! Yesterday I, Annie Boyles, became a member of Weight Watchers! I am very excited to begin this process. This is my second time joining this wonderful program. I was a member back in college...but with college schedules, going out with my friends, and just being younger and more immature did not work for me at the time. I lost a bunch of weight with the help of Weight Watchers and still have not gained it al back in all of these years...I believe that in itself is a testiment to the program. I have my first meeting Monday night after work....I am very excited. :)
  People don't always realize how difficult it is to lose weight. It's probably one of the most difficult things I have ever tried to do. Overwhelmed by emotions, scared of failure, and hope of a new life power your body to go through this very difficult time in your life. The kicker is that it's not just for a certain period of time that you can do this....it's for the rest of your life! That is a very daunting thought! This is where the wonderful organization of Weight Watchers steps in and helps you take a deep breath. Weight Watchers is not a diet, it's a life style change. The program is geared to help you change your way of life.....change your eating habits...and start getting in the healthy mind set. I know I can do this and am so thankful to have my parents and all the rest of my wonderful family to help me go through the process. I'm also so grateful for Charles. He is so amazing and wonderful and I know that he will help me get through all of this. He is willing to eat healthy and excercise and I know he will be the motivation that I need.
  Wish me luck all of my blog friends! Keena and I are about to embark on a wonderful journey!

Education

  I believe that being educated is extremely important, as I'm sure most of you do as well. There are plenty of topics out there that I do not know much about or understand but these are the topics that I either chose to learn more about or that I don't add much into the conversation when they are being discussed. I know that everyone is entitles to their own opinions and that they should be able to express them how they like but when the topic of my job comes up it is very difficult for me. People are not nearly as educated about commercial farming and livestock as they think that they are. They watch a documentary on tv and see that one farm has been mistreating their animals and they assume that all farms do the same thing. These same people will later watch a clip about farms that grow their food organically and the think they know what is best for the world.  These people are sadly uneducated and I wish they would take more time to do some real research.
  I work on a hog farm where the animals are in confinement. I love my job and worked very hard to get to where I am today. I went to college at one of the top schools for agriculture and learned from some of the best professors in their fields. I had classes learning specifically about the controversial topics in my field and about ways to help educate the community. Not all farms are bad. Some people really do care about the animals and are in it for the right reasons. Saying that all of the commercial farms where animals are raised for meat are bad is like saying that because some of the school systems are less than the best and have bad teachers that all of the schools and teachers may be bad. It's simply not true. When I am at work I'm saving lives. I help bring babies into the world and take care of them and their moms. I give them medicine if they are sick, make sure they have clean, fresh feed and water available to them at all times, and do my best to make sure that they do not have stress and discomfort. I love going into work and seeing the sows and the little babies. I wish other people could hear the other side of the story...or at least act like they want to hear it.
  The bottom line I'm trying to make is that you cannot judge a book by its cover. Not everything is as it seems. Education is the key.....but really think about where you are getting your sources from. Believe it or not, you cannot believe everything that you see on tv or read online.

On a happier note Miss Keena Louise is doing fantastically and LOVING the snow! She is just a gigantic puppy when she sees the stuff! Times like this I really wish we had a fenced in yard so she could at least run free! Hope everyone else is having a fantast week!

New Year's Intentions/ Wogging

Whew...we survived another year! With the new year comes new years resolutions....almost everyone has some of them. I hate that term, however, and feel that resolutions are so easily broken after the first weak of the year! My cousin told me that I should call them New Year's Intentions instead of resolutions...and I like it! Well, I have many intentions this year like saving money, paying off debt, and wogging with Keena! Now...the real intention was to walk Keena three times a week. I really wanna keep her weight down and the Good Lord knows I need to as well! Well, on a walk with my roomie and her dogs, Keena and I fell behind and started to jog to catch up. She loved it! She looked like a puppy in a dog bakery! Haha. So I decided that we will walk/jog (aka wog) three times a week. This week hasn't gone that well because I have been sick and the weather is just crazy. I don't want to make excuses....but it is what it is. This weather (minus the snow and thunder storms) is Keena's favorite! She has so much energy and acts like a crazy dog when you take her out to the bathroom! She runs and jumps and makes me feel like a guy that trains horses and holds the other end of that really long lead and spins in circles. Maybe it's because everyone tells me she is a horse and asks me if i have a saddle for her. Oh the comments people make when you have a giant dog. I'm sure all my other dane lovers can empathize. :) I hope everyone is enjoying the new year and hopefully keeping their New Year's Intentions! Good luck!

Keenas Christmas Presents

I tried posting some pictures of Keena's cute Christmas presents last week but blogger was being silly. So...I am attempting again! :)

Christmas/New Years

Whew....I know I'm a little late but I have been sooo busy this past week! New years weekend was a busy and long one for us. Charles and I left for Evansville for a three day weekend. New years eve we got together with my family to open presents! We raked in the presents! Keena actually stayed up here with my roommate and her dogs while we traveled. I don't like leaving her, especially that many days but my parents' house is so small and with my little nieces and nephew it's just too much! I got so many things I can't even list them...so I'll list Keena's goodies! From my sister Allie, she got a big thing of fresh baked bone cookies (big hit with all the dogs) and from my nieces and nephew aka, Keena's cousins, she got the coolest gift! They found a plate of gingerbread men made out of rawhide...the best part of it is that the plate itself is rawhide too! So when she is done with all of her goodies she will get to eat the plate! Hehe. :) My mom and dad bought Keena a new food and water bowl and a rug to put them on (if you know a dane...you know the slobber!) to keep at their house. I hate bringing Keenas bowls with me when I go to and from Evansville so this is very convenient for me! My last gift to Keena is a new dog bed! Its really cute and big! My cousin actually made it for her so its even better! Her dog bed was getting really flat and uncomfortable looking. She loves it!
 I am so thankful to my family for knowing how much my girl means to me that they would actually buy her something for Christmas. I know they do it for me, but the fact that they do it at all means a lot. Thanks guys! Charles, Keena and I are so lucky to have such wonderful families! I love them all! We got so many nice things and we are very happy! I love Christmas!