Today I Will Choose To Be Happy

We met with Anne Frank this week, and read from her diary. What a humbling thought, that Anne Frank would be teaching us about happiness. When David Ponder landed in her attic room in 1943, it had been a year and four months since her family went into hiding.  Still, this little 12 year old girl chose to be happy.  She said, "Complaining is an activity just as jumping rope or listening to the radio is an activity. One may choose to turn on the radio, and one may choose not to to turn on the radio. One may choose to complain and one may choose not to complain. I choose not to complain."  Anne went on to say, "Our very lives are fashioned by choice. First we make our choices, then our choices make us!"

David read his 5th decision from the pages of her diary. "Today I will choose to be happy."

This week I shared a personal journey of mine, when I went from a time of being unhappy, to a time of finding my way back to happiness. When you start to take a closer look at happiness, you realize that unhappiness is easy...happiness takes work.  Happiness is largely, not entirely, determined by us through hard work and wisdom. Every worthwhile thing in life is attained through hard work.  Happiness is not an exception.

We celebrated with three "happy " teams this week as they won for the week and took home the weekly prizes!

Noon: team "Diminishing Duo"  Patty and Lorelei won with a 1.66% of weight loss for the week.
5:30:   team "Reducibles"  Angella and Nancy won with a 1.97% of weight loss for the week.
7:00:   team "Gettin' Jiggy with It"  Sean and Ruth won with a 1.25% of weight loss for the week.

Congratulations to these top three teams! We're inspired by the good work you're doing!

Your Challenge For The Week:
Read The Joyful DECISION every day this week and make your list of 100 things you are grateful for!

Download week # 4 "Coping Skills ~ Feeling Your Way Through Life" and do the homework provided.


Happiness is a battle to be waged, not a feeling to be awaited. Anne Frank knew that, and we know it too. Here's to doing the things it takes to be happy!

Always encouraging you...with a happy heart,
Letha

Weekly Standings - Week 6

PerSisters	11.31%
Getting Jiggy with It	9.84%
Barely Brothers	9.75%
Thunder N Lightning	9.72%
Orange You Glad We Made It	9.55%
One Step Ahead	9.12%
No More Excess Baggage	9.06%
Belly Bustin' Bastions Packin' Six Packs, Propagating the Program, Pondering the Possibilities & Dealing with Daily Distractions	8.80%
Dumping Our Load	8.66%
Staying On Target	8.58%
2 Ready 4 Travel	8.20%
Manpower	7.71%
Lamb Chop	7.67%
Decision to Lose	7.41%
Reducing Riotous Reds	7.23%
Boating Bodies	7.16%
Travelocity Duo	7.12%
Tire Bellies	7.07%
Gut Busters	7.03%
Team A-Z	6.42%
Shrinky Dinks	6.40%
Fight Like a Girl	6.33%
Diminishing Duo	6.26%
Fear-less	6.21%
D-Lite-Ful Travelers	6.18%
In It To Win It	6.14%
Mission Possible	6.05%
Losers	6.03%
Knackers Not Snackers	5.98%
Junk Drunks	5.95%
Motoring Sisters	5.93%
We're Definitely Losing it	5.79%
Weightless	5.77%
The Royals	5.71%
Incredible Shrinking Women	5.64%
Slim Sisters	5.55%
Motivated Mamas	5.45%
Light the Weigh	5.45%
Reducibles	5.31%
Tick Tocks	5.31%
Saddle Bag Busters	4.93%
Voluptuous Vixens	4.92%
Structural Re-Org	4.77%
Wasting A-Weigh	4.75%
Now and Later	4.74%
Hope	4.66%
Cut'n Curries	4.62%
Fast Track	4.41%
Weigh To Live	4.26%
Mike and Kathy's Excellent Adventure	4.22%
Directionally Challenged	4.16%
Excess Baggage	4.14%
2 Losers	4.03%
Anti-Staff Vitamins	3.89%
Serious Leigh	3.89%
Back for Less	3.86%
Mind Over Less Matter	3.83%
Now You See It, Now You Don't	3.77%
Dumb & Dumber	3.75%
Baggage Busters	3.55%
Story Changers	3.39%
Winning & Losing	3.39%
None2	3.38%
Traveling Light	3.38%
Courageous Co-Hearts	3.12%
Downsizers	3.11%
I Lose	3.04%
Weigh to Go	3.01%
Traveling Overcomers	2.92%
Losing Our Luggage	2.63%
Brunettes do it Better	2.46%
3 L's	2.39%
To Be Determined	2.36%
Traveling Adventurers	2.03%
Traveling Tramps	2.00%
On the Road Again	1.96%
Soul Sisters	1.84%
Sisterhood of the Traveling Skinny Pants	1.68%
Now & Forever	1.12%
Slimmer Swimmers Charge Forth	0.64%
Cruisin to Losin III	0.59%
Baggage -BE-Gone	0.31%
Cease the Weigh	0.07%

Weekly Standings - Week 5

PerSisters	10.34%
Thunder N Lightning	9.52%
Barely Brothers	8.78%
Getting Jiggy with It	8.69%
One Step Ahead	8.63%
Decision to Lose	8.52%
Orange You Glad We Made It	8.33%
Staying On Target	8.20%
No More Excess Baggage	7.80%
Belly Bustin' Bastions Packin' Six Packs Propagating the Program Pondering the Possibilities	7.77%
Manpower	7.45%
Lamb Chop	7.44%
Dumping Our Load	7.21%
2 Ready 4 Travel	6.92%
Tire Bellies	6.76%
Fear-less	6.63%
Reducing Riotous Reds	6.49%
Boating Bodies	6.40%
Junk Drunks	6.13%
Motoring Sisters	6.01%
Gut Busters	5.90%
Team A-Z	5.64%
Losers	5.64%
Travelocity Duo	5.53%
Shrinky Dinks	5.41%
Fight Like a Girl	5.33%
Slim Sisters	5.27%
Wasting A-Weigh	5.26%
The Royals	5.25%
Light the Weigh	5.20%
We're Definitley Losing it	5.11%
In It To Win It	5.07%
Incredible Shrinking Women	5.05%
Mission Possible	4.98%
Weightless	4.94%
Motivated Mamas	4.84%
Now You See It, Now You Don't	4.82%
D-Lite-Ful Travelers	4.81%
Tick Tocks	4.79%
Diminishing Duo	4.66%
Now and Later	4.64%
Cut'n Curries	4.62%
Knackers Not Snackers	4.56%
Back for Less	4.44%
Baggage Busters	4.14%
Fast Track	4.05%
Excess Baggage	3.94%
Downsizers	3.81%
Directionally Challenged	3.77%
Voluptuous Vixens	3.76%
Saddle Bag Busters	3.76%
Brunettes do it Better	3.75%
Dumb & Dumber	3.75%
Structural Re-Org	3.66%
Weigh To Live	3.55%
Anti-Staff Vitamins	3.46%
Mike and Kathy's Excellent Adventure	3.42%
Reducibles	3.40%
Hope	3.35%
2 Losers	3.28%
Serious Leigh	3.26%
Traveling Light	3.22%
Courageous Co-Hearts	3.07%
Traveling Overcomers	2.83%
Mind Over Less Matter	2.67%
Story Changers	2.53%
Weigh to Go	2.53%
Penny & Wendy	2.50%
Losing Our Luggage	2.46%
Traveling Tramps	2.40%
Winning & Losing	2.39%
To Be Determined	2.36%
Now & Forever	2.25%
I Lose	2.17%
Traveling Adventurers	2.03%
On the Road Again	1.96%
Sisterhood of the Traveling Skinny Pants	1.31%
Soul Sisters	0.90%
3 L's	0.70%
Cruisin to Losin III	0.59%
Slimmer Swimmers Charge Forth	-0.47%
Baggage -BE-Gone	-0.62%
Cease the Weigh	-2.31%

I Have a Decided Heart!

We found ourselves aboard the Santa Maria in the year 1492 on Tuesday! Christopher Columbus was our focus as we looked at a decided heart! He was truly a man with a decided heart because he had vision! This 4th DECISION on our journey taught us that the decision of the heart is what fuels the active decision.  A decided heart is unwavering no matter what the circumstances.

We not only looked at the life of Christopher Columbus Tuesday, we also heard about Hernando Cortez. He was a man with a mission! He was a conqueror. I told the famous story of Cortez, a leader of men on the sea.  They traveled for days and arrived in 1519 on the Yucatan peninsula with one goal.  To capture a great treasure. He made an extraordinary decision to help his men commit. He burn their ships!  With no way out and no way to turn back, his men fought hard and captured the treasure!  Cortez knew a couple of important things; 1. You better know what you're fighting for and 2. Make sure that what you're fighting for is worth the hassle!

We could relate to both of those things this week!  The treasure for us is a long, healthy life with promises of a better future not for just ourselves, but for our children and our children's children!  We too, have to choose to live with DECIDED hearts and "burn our boats" so that we don't have a way out!

Our winners for the week took home the  little red DECIDED HEARTS along with cozy throws and the luggage!

Noon:  "Barely Brothers"  Arty and Rick won with a 2.01% of weight loss for the week.
5:30:    "No More Excess Baggage"  Joe and Leta won with a 1.99%  of weight loss for the week.
7:00:    "One Step Ahead"  Jana and Kathleen won, for the 2nd week in a row, with a 1.79% of weight loss for the week.

Congratulations to all three teams! You had great losses this week!
We also gave out 3 fifty dollar bills Tuesday to three worthy team mates! Anyone with a 2.0 pound weight loss for the week had a chance!  Congratulations to Candy, Kathleen and Debbie!

Your Challenge For The Week:
Read The Certain Decision "I Have a Decided Heart" every day this week and answer the questions on the back of the page using your journal for more space.

Download week #3 "What's in Your Back Pack ~ Controlling What You Can" and do the homework provided.

David Ponder asked himself after reading this 4th decision, " What could I accomplish if I had a spirit as powerful as Columbus?" So, what could happen???

To burning boats...
Always encouraging you,
Letha

I Am a Person of Action!

We were inspired by Joshua Chamberlain this Tuesday. One hundred and fifty years ago, he made a DECISION to "Do Something" and it changed the course of history! David Ponder traveled to Gettysburg this week and received the blue tobacco pouch from Chamberlain himself. He learned about the most crucial decision of all..."I am a person of Action!" Without this important decision, the rest are not useful.

Becoming a person of action is a choice, not a process. Joshua Chamberlain made the choice to come over the hill and push forward when things looked bleak back in 1863. It changed everything! We learned a valuable lesson from him this week. When a choice to do nothing, or to do something arises, we must make the choice to "Do Something!" Action is defining us every day!

We had three all ladies teams win this week!  Rock on girls!!! Thanks to team "Fear-Less" for sponsoring our teams this week. I'm sure they are going to love their coffee travel mugs and the moose munch coffee!

This week's winners:
Noon  Team "Hope"                   Oksana and Luba with a 2.59% of weight loss for the week!
5:30    Team "Fear-Less"            Wendy and Darcy with a 2.06% of weight loss for the week!
7:00    Team "One Step Ahead" Jana and Kathleen with a 1.87% of weight loss for the week!

We celebrated with another client this week as she hit her 100 pound weight loss mark!  Congratulations Gretchen!  You ARE a person of action and it shows!  We are so proud of you and what you have accomplished in the last 6 month!

Your Challenge For the Week:
Read your decision every day and answer the questions provided. Bring them in next week for a ticket in the drawing.

Lose 2 pounds this week and be entered into a drawing for $50...each gathering!

Download week # 2 "Change Your Thinking ~ Change Your life" and do the homework provided.

You are either a person of action or you're not! It's time to state your case...What are you?

Until next week..."Do Something," "Do Something."

Always encouraging you,
Letha

Team Challenge Standings

Team Name	Total Team
Thunder N Lightning	9.13%
Decision to Lose	7.93%
Staying On Target	7.65%
Getting Jiggy with It	7.61%
Tire Bellies	7.37%
Orange You Glad We Made It	7.13%
One Step Ahead	6.97%
Belly Bustin' Bastions Packin' Six Packs     Propagating the Program Pondering the Possibilities	6.92%
Barely Brothers	6.90%
Dumping Our Load	6.80%
Lamb Chop	6.39%
Manpower	6.04%
Fear-less	6.00%
2 Ready 4 Travel	6.00%
No More Excess Baggage	5.92%
Boating Bodies	5.85%
Gut Busters	5.68%
Junk Drunks	5.57%
Losers	5.46%
Reducing Riotous Reds	5.31%
Light the Weigh	5.29%
PerSisters	5.19%
Travelocity Duo	4.95%
Slim Sisters	4.81%
Fight Like a Girl	4.69%
Weigh To Live	4.68%
Shrinky Dinks	4.68%
Cut'n Curries	4.62%
Team A-Z	4.59%
We're Definitley Losing it	4.40%
Wasting A-Weigh	4.28%
In It To Win It	4.24%
Back for Less	4.12%
Motoring Sisters	4.11%
Weightless	4.02%
Motivated Mamas	4.02%
Mission Possible	4.02%
D-Lite-Ful Travelers	3.97%
Now and Later	3.93%
Tick Tocks	3.93%
Incredible Shrinking Women	3.88%
Diminishing Duo	3.80%
Knackers Not Snackers	3.80%
Now You See It, Now You Don't	3.79%
Structural Re-Org	3.66%
Directionally Challenged	3.65%
Voluptuous Vixens	3.60%
The Royals	3.60%
I Lose	3.51%
Mind Over Less Matter	3.41%
Saddle Bag Busters	3.36%
Hope	3.29%
Serious Leigh	3.16%
Dumb & Dumber	3.16%
Losing Our Luggage	3.16%
Baggage Busters	3.11%
Courageous Co-Hearts	3.07%
Traveling Light	2.97%
Traveling Overcomers	2.97%
3 L's	2.92%
Excess Baggage	2.86%
Fast Track	2.81%
Anti-Staff Vitamins	2.76%
Story Changers	2.75%
Reducibles	2.75%
Brunettes do it Better	2.65%
Downsizers	2.65%
Winning & Losing	2.58%
2 Losers	2.55%
Traveling Tramps	2.40%
To Be Determined	2.36%
Mike and Kathy's Excellent Adventure	2.27%
Weigh to Go	2.12%
Traveling Adventurers	2.03%
On the Road Again	1.96%
Cruisin to Losin III	1.61%
None2	1.54%
Sisterhood of the Traveling Skinny Pants	1.52%
Now & Forever	1.23%
Cease the Weigh	0.96%
Soul Sisters	0.76%
Slimmer Swimmers Charge Forth	0.74%
Baggage -BE-Gone	0.27%

I Will Seek Wisdom!

Tuesday we looked at our second DECISION..."I will Seek Wisdom."  Our second DECISION on our journey through The Travelers Gift and through our 10 week team Challenge. We folded up our first DECISION, "The Buck Stops Here" and placed it in our pocket for safe keeping and journeyed on.

This week we found ourselves in the temple of King Solomon.  We learned a lot about wisdom this week in Vancouver Washington! Most people mistake wisdom for education. Seeking wisdom is not the same as gaining knowledge, however it is a precursor to wisdom. 

Knowledge is the awareness and understand of facts, truth or information. Wisdom, is the ability to apply knowledge to your life.

King Solomon shared three things that we must do to seek wisdom.
1. Read
2. Choose your companions wisely
3. Serve others

We unpacked all three of those important precursors to wisdom Tuesday and we are ready to press in to the second decision this week.

We celebrated some GREAT weight loss too! Our winning teams were gifted with Nancy's famous cooking class and all that goes with it!  They will be acquiring wisdom for sure during that class! Congratulations to all you weekly winners!

Noon "Decision to Lose" Meretha and Heidi with a 2.13% of weight loss for the week
5:30   "We're Definitely Losin' It"  George and Terry with a 2.89% of weight loss for the week
7:00   "Junk Drunks"  Marci and Emily with a 5.63% of weight loss for the week

Our DECISION for the week starts out by saying "Knowing that wisdom waits to be gathered, I will actively seek her out. My past can never be changed, but I can change the future by changing my actions TODAY!"  My hope as we travel through this important 10 weeks, is that everyone will see this challenge as an opportunity to not only lose weight...but change FOREVER!

Your Challenge For The Week:
Read your second DECISION "I will Seek Wisdom" every day
Answer the questions on the back of your hand out,  using your own journal or note book, and bring back in next week

For those who have not heard the CD series or for those who choose to press in to a little extra homework to seek more wisdom :
Download off the web site and listen to "Understanding Your Beliefs, The Key to Permanent Weight Loss" and do the homework provided.

Decision 1: The Buck Stops Here.
Decision 2: I will Seek Wisdom.

Read, choose your companions well, and serve others until I see you again!

Always encouraging you,
Letha

Weekly Standings - Week 3

Thunder N Lightning	8.99%
Decision to Lose	7.20%
Staying On Target	6.84%
Getting Jiggy with It	6.49%
Tire Bellies	6.25%
Barely Brothers	5.73%
Orange You Glad We Made It	5.69%
Junk Drunks	5.63%
Dumping Our Load	5.55%
Belly Bustin' Bastions Packin' Six Packs Propagating the Program	5.53%
Lamb Chop	5.27%
One Step Ahead	5.20%
PerSisters	5.19%
No More Excess Baggage	4.88%
Boating Bodies	4.82%
2 Ready 4 Travel	4.76%
Manpower	4.63%
Cut'n Curries	4.62%
Reducing Riotous Reds	4.48%
Losers	4.44%
Light the Weigh	4.42%
Gut Busters	4.36%
Fear-less	4.01%
Shrinky Dinks	3.95%
Now and Later	3.93%
Fight Like a Girl	3.93%
Now You See It, Now You Don't	3.79%
Travelocity Duo	3.78%
Back for Less	3.68%
Directionally Challenged	3.65%
Weigh To Live	3.55%
Motoring Sisters	3.54%
Weightless	3.47%
Structural Re-Org	3.35%
The Royals	3.29%
Mission Possible	3.23%
D-Lite-Ful Travelers	3.20%
Dumb & Dumber	3.16%
Slim Sisters	3.12%
Tick Tocks	3.12%
Baggage Busters	3.12%
Wasting A-Weigh	3.08%
Motivated Mamas	3.01%
Incredible Shrinking Women	2.98%
Knackers Not Snackers	2.96%
Losing Our Luggage	2.92%
3 L's	2.92%
George & Terry	2.90%
Courageous Co-Hearts	2.83%
Voluptuous Vixens	2.82%
Anti-Staff Vitamins	2.79%
Team A-Z	2.78%
Excess Baggage	2.64%
In It To Win It	2.64%
I Lose	2.63%
Traveling Tramps	2.61%
Diminishing Duo	2.53%
Fast Track	2.53%
Mind Over Less Matter	2.50%
Saddle Bag Busters	2.47%
To Be Determined	2.36%
Serious Leigh	2.31%
Brunettes do it Better	2.27%
Downsizers	2.19%
Story Changers	2.16%
On the Road Again	2.16%
Mike and Kathy's Excellent Adventure	2.06%
Sisterhood of the Traveling Skinny Pants	1.80%
Traveling Light	1.79%
Traveling Adventurers	1.78%
Reducibles	1.77%
Traveling Overcomers	1.74%
Now & Forever	1.65%
Weigh to Go	1.63%
Cruisin to Losin III	1.61%
2 Losers	1.61%
Penny & Wendy	1.44%
Cease the Weigh	0.96%
Winning & Losing	0.86%
Hope	0.70%
Soul Sisters	0.57%
Baggage -BE-Gone	0.38%
Slimmer Swimmers Charge Forth	-0.61%