High School Musical

Sunday March 3, 2013: Beauty and the Beast

So last night and this afternoon I was privileged enough to get to watch my daughter perform in her first ever high school musical.

I remember when she first told us that she was going to audition. I was so proud of her for being willing to audition, but scared for her at the same time because I knew how much she really wanted to be involved with this production. The rest of the week after her audition was a pretty long week as she waited to find out if she got into the musical or not.

After finding out she had made it, her emotions were a little bit mixed. She was ecstatic that she got in, but a little disappointed with the roles that she got. She got to be a townsperson, and a plate in the production of Beauty and the Beast.

I have to admit, there were days when she wouldn't get home from school until later into the evening because of practice, or she would have cheerleading practice as well as musical practice and her mom would have to pick her up from one and run her to another, but after watching the performances the last couple of days.....it's definitely been worth it.

Last night, for the first time, I got to see the finished work and the product that was the result of all the hard work that each and every one of the kids had put into this production. I have to say, they did a great job. Today I was able to watch it again, and once again they did a great job. I was very proud of each and every one of the kids involved, and extremely proud of my daughter. Not only did she make the decision on her own to participate in this wonderful production, but she went out and auditioned, got the part, attended the practices, worked hard and did a fabulous job. I was, and am, extremely proud of her, and I think the smile was plastered on my face every time she was on the stage.

Good job baby girl, and to the rest of the cast as well. Great job. As much as I look forward to her next musical (and maybe even a bigger role) I also can wait because that just means she is another year closer to graduating and moving on with her life. That's one production that I am not ready to watch....just not yet. Let me enjoy these times while I can.

Getting Healthy.....and Getting Results

Saturday February 16, 2013:

I honestly have not looked at my last blog to see how long it's been since I have posted one, but I know it's been a while. I apologize for not being better at staying on top of this. It's actually harder to do than I thought it would be. I also knew I was busy, but never realized how busy until I realized that I really don't have much free time these days.

So one thing that I have mentioned in some of my previous blogs is the fact that I started on Herbalife products back in December (the 7th to be exact) and committed to them for 30 days. Well before my 30 days were up I was so happy with my results (weight loss, high energy, clarity, focus, etc.) that I decided to become a Independent Distributor for Herbalife, and have been on the products ever since.

To give you some background on why I was interested in getting healthy, within the last 18 months I had weighed in at 217 pounds, I was going in to work at 5:00am so I wasn't eating breakfast, I was working through my lunch, so I wasn't eating lunch, and then I would snack on junk food all day long at work. Since I work for a vending company I had access to candy bars, potato chips, pastries, sandwiches, pop, ice cream,  etc.. I mean anything you can buy in a vending machine, I was eating it as my food supply during the day. It wasn't healthy, and I wasn't healthy.

I took action and contacted a friend of mine who was an Herbalife distributor and started talking to her about my situation. I told her that I needed, and wanted, to get healthy and if I lost a few pounds in the process then great. I attended a sampling party and committed to the 30 days. The night I committed to get healthy I weighed in at 198.5 pounds, I would come home after work every day and take an hour or two nap, I was depressed and I felt lousy. I was tired all the time, had no energy to do anything, and I was overweight and out of shape. Since then, I have been on Herbalife for 72 days, I have dropped right around 17 pounds, I have only taken one nap after work in those two months, I feel great, I have energy, and my depression is minimal at best. One of the best parts for me.....I HAVE NOT EXERCISED ONE TIME!!!!!!

Today I attended my first Michigan STS (Success Training Seminar) at the Firekeepers Casino in Battle Creek and learned a lot about all of the wonderful products that Herbalife has to help anyone and everyone no matter what your situation. Listened to guest speaker Alexis Pelfrey teach how Herbalife can change your life, and your lifestyle.

(me with guest speaker Alexis Pelfrey and my wife Paula)

In the 70+ days that I have been on Herbalife, not only have I experienced my own results, but I have watched friends and family experience some results of their own. I currently have three family members and three friends all using Herbalife, and all using the products in their own way, each looking to get healthy, but each with different goals. They have combined to lose just over 25 pounds (in less than 3 weeks) and they all say they have more energy, they feel good, and are losing weight.

I could go on and on about Herbalife, but unfortunately I am still trying to learn more and more as we speak, so I don't know all I need to know yet. But I do know this..... Herbalife works. I've seen the results myself, I've seen the results in my friends and family, and I spent the day with almost 500 people that have all seen the same kind of results.

 (my cupboard with my pudding and jello mixes, peanut butter powder, oatmeal,  & coconut flakes)

(the products that have changed my life)

If you are reading this, and are interested in experiencing these same kinds of results feel free to message me and I would love to talk to you and see how Herbalife can help you to achieve your goals. If I don't know the answers to your questions, I would work with you to help you find those answers. But I am working to be a great wellness coach, and I look forward to helping all of you to get healthy. After all, if I can do......anyone can do it.

Welcome To Michigan

Saturday January 26, 2013:

I must start this blog with an apology. I am sorry that I have slacked in keeping this updated, but I have been without internet access at home since at least last Sunday evening. I don't know if it has been the weather, or what, but I still don't have internet....I am currently sitting at Martin's using their wifi to do this blog.

So anyways.....

Welcome to Michigan. There are many jokes out there that everyone uses to describe the state they are from. For example if you are from Michigan you might say one of the following:

You know you are from Michigan when you use the back of your left hand or the palm of your right hand to show people where you live.

You know you are from Michigan if you have gotten frostbitten and sunburnt in the same week.

You know you are from Michigan if you know that UP is a place, not a direction (that is the Upper Peninsula for all of you not from Michigan)

You know you are from Michigan if you know how to pronounce Mackinac. (Mak-in-aw)

So you get the idea.

Now while I have been to at least 27 states in the union, and am currently planning a trip to Hawaii in 2014, I have to say that I love Michigan. There really is a lot of things to do (if you like the outdoors) and there is plenty of beautiful scenery around the state. Just to show you a few, we have:

Mackinac Bridge

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

and 

Tahquamenon Falls

So these are just a few places in Michigan from the Mackinac Bridge north up into the Upper Peninsula. But one of my favorite local places to visit is the lighthouse in St. Joseph. Fortunately for me I actually get to drive near it two to three times a week for work, so I get the chance to stop by and shoot pics from time to time.  I am going to post below some pics from there, but I called this blog "Welcome to Michigan" because you will get to see the four seasons of Michigan in these photos.

Here is spring:

Here is summer:

Here is fall:

Here is winter:

I have to admit that as much as I love the high waves crashing on the lighthouse in the fall, I have to say that the winter picture is my favorite. It was pretty cold out, but just to see everything frozen and beautiful the way it is, was just incredible.

So these are just a few of the many sites to be seen in our lovely state of Michigan. Now while I would move to North or South Carolina in a heartbeat, or Tennessee, Arizona, or several other states. Michigan is home and I will always be a Michigander, no matter where I live.

Another one of the "Michigan" jokes goes like this:

You know you are from Michigan if you get to experience all four seasons (Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter) all in the same day. That might be true, but that is just another one of the beautiful things about Michigan.

Now somebody please take this snow away and bring on Spring!

What a Day.....

Thursday January 17, 2013:

So what a week it's been for me, and I'm sorry I haven't kept up with my blog this week.

I started my Monday out in typical fashion, finished with a 10 hour day. I know that isn't bad, but for me that is a long day as I usually don't hit 8 hours consistently. Then Tuesday I was sick with a sore throat and a pinched sciatic nerve so I took the day off. Then Wednesday I did my normal day, then headed to St. Joe to start the process of opening a new store for work. 13 hours later I was finally going home. Then today I went in at 5:00am (normal start time) did my normal job then returned to the new store to stock the shelves to prepare for tomorrows opening day. 14 1/2 hours later I was finally getting home. So even with a day off I am still going to have well over 40 hours this week, and I only get paid for 40 hours.

So you might wonder what exactly do I do, and what do I mean by a "new store" for work. Well I work for a vending company, yes the type of company that has vending machines in businesses for break rooms. The type with potato chips, soda, candy.......you get the idea. Well what I do is we started replacing these vending machines with C-Stores....short for Convenience Store.

So here are a couple of pictures of what I have done the past two days:

We took the old vending machines out of the break room leaving a blank wall.....and then we turn it in to this:

I know, it's not the most exciting job in the world, but it is pretty cool to see it all come together, and to see the employees excited about having a "convenience store" facility right in their own break room.

So it's been a long week, but it's been fun actually. 

UPDATE: Below is an updated photo from a post I made last week about the progress of one of the stops that I have on my job. (http://amelio2013.blogspot.com/2013/01/life-is-work-in-progress.html?spref=fb)

I can look at this photo and can see the obvious changes, the obvious progress that has been made toward completing this project. I also can look back at myself in the last week and see progress that I have made, changes that have been made toward turning me into the person that God wants me to be. While my changes may not be as obvious on the outside for everyone else to see, they are obvious on the inside and I see them....and right now, that is what is important to me.

Traffic Signs For Life Events

Monday January 14, 2013:

Have you ever taken a long road trip?

Do you use a GPS (Global Positioning System) in your car? Do you use an atlas? Do you use Mapquest, Google Maps, or any other sort of mapping system?

I will admit that I have used all of the above at some point in my life. But if you are honest with yourself, or if you have any idea how to read a sign, truth is you can probably get to almost any major city without ever looking at a map, or a GPS unit. After all, every major highway has signage everywhere, all you have to do is know how to interpret these signs.

I mean, this sign doesn't look hard to read does it?

Ok, maybe if you are driving in bumper to bumper traffic this could be confusing, but if you aren't and you are headed to Phoenix or Los Angeles you could figure out pretty easily that you need to turn right.

Or you might be driving and you see signs that look something like these:

You get the point. If you have any sense of direction, and you can read a sign, chances are you can get pretty much anywhere you want to without using a GPS or an atlas or any other sort of directions.

Did you ever think about these signs, and how they can relate to life? Sounds funny doesn't it? But seriously, what if we had signs like these that could direct us through life? Just imagine:

Which way is the right way to go? Or what is the right path to take in life? Well how about....

or

Wouldn't those signs help us to make better choices in life?

Or how about this:

What if on our road of life we had signs that looked like this instead:

Wouldn't signs like that help us all figure out what it is we want, or at least know where we need to go to get the things we want?

Or what about a sign like this?

Shouldn't it read more like this?

Or how about this one, I know we are all guilty of this one:

We are all guilty of speeding. Whether it's 20 mph over or just 5 mph over, we have all done it.

But think about it, doesn't life go by fast enough? Shouldn't we slow down and enjoy life a little more. I remember when I was a kid and it seemed like the days were extremely long, and lasted forever. School years took forever, the summers seemed to last for at least  six months. But as soon as we get out of school and get out into the real world our "speed limit" picks up and our life flies by, and no matter how much you want it to slow down, it doesn't happen.

I have more signs that I would like to talk about, and I will in another blog, but as you are out driving around, whether on the highway, or just a normal two lane road take a look at the signage and think about how it could relate to your life. I bet you will surprise yourself with some of the ideas you think of, plus it gives you something to do while you are cruising around. 

Am I Really This Old?

Saturday January 12, 2013:

 As a dad, today is one of those days to which you look forward with a little bit of hesitation, a little bit of excitement, a little bit nervousness, a little bit of joy, a little bit of worry, a little bit of comfort, a little bit of protectiveness, and a little bit of anxiousness.....yet despite all of these mixed emotions you have A WHOLE LOT OF PRIDE.

 You see today my 15 year old daughter attended her first Winter Formal as a freshmen in high school. WOW....15 years old!!!! Wow....freshmen in high school!!!! Am I really this old that my daughter is attending high school formals?   (please no old jokes)

You see I still remember the day she was born like it was just yesterday. It was December 14, 1997, it was a Sunday. I felt all along in my heart that the baby we were expecting was going to be a girl, but I KNEW it was going to be a girl when she decided to be born on an NFL Football Sunday.

You see it didn't even bother me that the Dallas Cowboys lost that day to the Cincinnati Bengals 31-24 and fell to 6-9 on the season because at 6:19am my life as I knew it had changed. I was now a dad. A proud dad of a 5 pound 13 ounce little girl. A little girl that would have me wrapped around her finger from the moment I cut the umbilical cord until the day the Lord takes me home.

I know that I've not always been the best dad in the world, and there were probably times where I should have been here when I wasn't. But I also know that there has never been a moment since 6:19am on December 14, 1997 that I have ever loved anything more than I love my little girl.

I get mad, upset, irritated, and everything else with her like any other parent does, but I wouldn't trade her for anything. ANYTHING!!!!!

So as today got closer and closer my feelings about it were all over the place. I was happy for her to be so excited about it, but I was not excited that she was old enough to be attending a formal already. I was excited to see how beautiful she would look in her dress, but I was not excited about her being all dressed up and looking older than she is. I was not excited about a certain boy that was supposed to be her date, but I was excited when he realized that he wasn't good enough for her and "broke up" with her just last week. You see.....I was being a dad. A dad with a teenage daughter.

She is a great kid....she has her flaws, she is human after all, but I am really proud of the young lady she is becoming.

I can't believe that she is already in high school, that she is 15 years old, and that she is becoming an independent young lady already. But I also know that 15 years after the day when I welcomed her in to this world, I am still a very proud dad, and I hope she had a lot of fun at her formal, but at the same time....I hope it's a while before her next one. She is growing up too fast. I love you baby, and you looked beautiful today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9I5UV4VWCSk

Friday, Friends, Fellowship, Fun and Food

Friday January 11, 2013: So after a long work week it's always nice when Friday comes around. Not only is it the beginning of the weekend, but for the last few months it's been an opportunity to hang out with my friends and go to dinner. For the last couple of months I've had the opportunity to hang out with some friends on Friday nights as we all get together for dinner. While the size of the group changes from week to week, as well as the location, the fact that it is friends getting together, having fun, and eating food always stays the same. So I encourage each of you....get a group of friends, plan a day to hang out and spend time with each other....just relaxing, having fun and being yourselves. You will be surprised at some of the things you learn about each other, some of the things you hear, and maybe even some of the things you will see along the way. But I promise you it will be worth it, and it will be a "ritual" or "habit" that you look forward to every time. We've been to places like Lunker's, Zeke's, Applebee's, Chili's, T.G.I.Friday's, Wings Etc., and the Four Winds Casino, but no matter where we go, we always have a good time, good food, good fellowship and interesting conversations. It's a weekly "ritual" that I look forward to, and it's a "habit" I hope I never have to break. To my friends that are a part of this weekly adventure, thank you for including me in your Friday night ritual, and I look forward to many more of these fun times.