Woot wooh I am 21!!

Heck yeah this girl is 21...

haha boy I went all out for my birthday, bought myself a blender and my parents suprised me with the grill I have been asking for!!

I felt like such a nerd when I told my mom that I wanted a grill for my birthday, but hey I love to cook!

My family also has a great sense of humor!! They brought a basket along with a grill that included some nice things for my grill and also the following... Some bottles of martinellis.. cause you know I am of age to PARTAYY (haha no thanks) lol she also threw in a big pack of rub on tattoos because I had hinted that I might maybe be thinking about getting one ( just a tiny tiny little one..)  My mom figured it would keep me out of the bars and tattoo shops!! Sure do love her : ]

I was definitely a spoiled girl this birthday!!! I got flowers from a good looking guy, a birthday lunch with coworkers and a yummy dinner with my parents!!

I can say without a doubt it was an amazing few days of celebrating!





The dreaded gym...

Awh the gym... crawling with muscle heads, girls with poofy hair and too much make up on, the creepers with staring problems, and people who have no idea what they are doing, but act like they do.. There are always the old men who hit on you or the young boys who try. The girls who work out like guys and vice versa. The girls who dont work out at all and the mirror obsessed. There are the loud and obnoxious or the " Are you finished with that machine" kind of people.. The gym is a great place to run into all kinds of creatures..

Does any of this stop you from going to the gym?

Or does the fear of being one of these people keep you out of such a great place??

DONT LET IT.. The first time I went to golds gym I remember carefully picking out what I was going to wear and even made sure I had the kind of socks that dont show under my running shoes.. cause you know thats really nerdy.. I walked in thinking that I was making a grand entrance and to be honest maybe 4 out of the 50 people there even looked up.. was I dissappointed, NO! Pure relief is the feeling I felt because I could go and work out in peace. I got over the idea that I was going to impress anybody and I started going to workout for myself!

Why am I telling you this?? Because you have to get over the whole "I am going to the gym so other people can notice me working out" or to do the thing we are all guilty of, critisizing others who are also there thinking the same thing as us. Now I go the gym with shorts and a t shirt I grabbed in the dark and when I get there I put my head phones on and literally ( sounds lame typing it but its true) I get in my "zone". You shouldnt care if people are staring at you or if others are there to just look pretty and not sweat a single drop. It shouldnt matter if some creepy old man wants to run next to you the whole time your on the treadmill or if the cute guy at the fountain wants to ask you out..  Let them do what they want to do and you do what your there to do!

If their watching, let them watch but dont let it change how you work out. Dont work harder for anyone else but yourself. When you get ready to go to the gym, dress in what your going to feel your most comfortable in. As for your hair.. if you plan on working out dont put yourself through hell with your hair down!! I know that no one likes the feeling of sweaty gross hair sticking to your neck, pull it up and I promise you will feel so much better!! Who cares if you have a crazy messy out of control bun on your head!!

As for music, work out to whatever gets you pumped up! Everyone is different and somedays you will just be feeling different things, just go with the flow! If you have pandora or some kind of app like that, use it!! Thats what they make it for! Music is huge to me when I work out, when I forget my head phones or my phone is dead, my work out almost feels ruined! If you cant get inspired, try signing up for www.rockmyrun.com! its an awesome site that has mixes that are made to pump you up during a workout!

I guess with this post I just want to try and change peoples mind about getting to the gym! Dont let all those excuses keep you from a good work out, you can only do so much at your house with your 5lb weights! (not saying that it doesnt help to work out at home) Get in your zone and work hard, dont pay attention to anyone else but yourself. Focus on what your doing and what you want to achieve that day. I always go to the gym with a goal in mind, it helps me focus and gives me something to work for!

Have confidence in yourself!!

Go out and get to it!!





Too all the moms...but mostly mine!

Happy Mothers Day!!!

(its technically tomorrow, but you deserve two days!)

Lets just start off with a few pictures of my beautiful mother

And there is my pretty little sister!!

The 3 amigo's

My sweet mom and dad, 26 years of marriage and great example!!

Dana Hardy Yeates is a mother and wife to 4 children and a husband... That at times can all be a pain in her butt I am sure!

She is the most understanding woman that I know, who has taught me that patience is necessary in life. She has raised us, along with my dad, to be independent, understanding, and to "stick to our guns." She has brought us up in the gospel and has taught us that having god and the priesthood in our life is not only a huge blessing, but we would be lost in the world with out its guidelines and teachings. I know that she has a testimony and love for our savior.

My mom is the most caring and loving person I know, she has a huge heart and anyone who knows or meets her would agree with me. She has a hard time ever saying no to people because its in her nature to want to help anyone in need!

She is very sweet don't get me wrong, but my mom has a fiesty stubborn streak... ( if you havent guessed by now, thats where I got mine from). It isn't a bad thing to have, she has always got what she wanted because she worked hard and never settled for anything less than that! She has taught me that I have to value myself and know what I deserve to truely be happy in life.

I can easily say that my mom is my bestfriend, along with my little sister madison. She has always been there for me, to give me advice, sometimes not what I want to hear, but what needs to be said. To listen, I call her at least twice a day and she just listens to any little thing I feel like telling her. Sheis there as supporter of whatever us kids want to do, wether it be dancing, wrestling, any sport we wanted to try, or random stuff like when I thought I wanted to be a figure skater or a rodeo cowgirl.. Even though she knew it was just a phase, she drove me and my cousin to the ice rink or over to the little bear river arena to ride horses. My parents have been my number one fans my whole life, rooting for me too win or succeed in anything obstacle I have tried to tackle. Having support like that has made me the woman I am today.

 She has been a mother in every sense of the word, caring, nurturing, raising us with TLC!

Getting older I have truely realized how lucky I am to have amazing parents that I do, and to have a close relationship with both of them. I am thankful every day for that. I and my siblings have made our fair share of mistakes and oops moments. My mom has been there for us through all of them, even when she probably wanted to just shake us and say "What where you thinking??" She instead tried to explain to us why it was a mistake and that we knew better. My parents raised us with trust and freedom to make our own decisions and only asked that we listen to their advice.

My mother is strong and amazing and I can't wait to become a mother, not only to stive to be half as good as she is, but to have my children grow up with her as their grandmother!

I love you mom!!





I thought I would post this too my blog to show my progress, I know that taking pictures helped me because I had something to compare myself too.. and be realistic doing so!

         Lucky me. I got to spend my whole Cinco de Mayo in Loa, Utah with this beautiful bride!!
       I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else. It was a great day with great people and Brooke and Coltons day was so pretty!



            My week has been lacking on the motivation which is not normal for me.. So of course I looked to the great PINTREST for some serious inspiration. Boy did I find it!!

     It just helped me remember that this decision to get fit and healthy wasnt just a choice I made to follow for couple months and then I could go back to what I was doing before, it was a lifestyle change that I will follow the rest of my life!! When your having a tough day, rememeber why you started in the first place and how far you have come. I promise you in the end when you reach the goal you worked so hard for, what you wanted so badly, will out weigh all the stuggle that came with it!!

With this being said.. Don't give yourself excuses either. You can put pressure on yourself in a healthy way! Set goals and give yourself deadlines to meet, but reward yourself after. Give praise, it sounds silly, but tell yourself good job, in the end your opinion is the most important anyways.

You deserve to feel and be your best, so don't hate or break yourself down but try

 your hardest to be your best!

Remind yourself of the things you love about your body and mind. If your working on those good things you will find more and more things to love.

Weight really doesn't define you. I learned that quickly. You cant focus on a number or statistics of what other people think you should weigh for your age, height, and gender.

As long as you arent treating your body like a waste basket and you are always looking to improve and better yourself, not just in health aspects but as an all around person, then no one can tell you that you aren't good enough.

You is kind.

You is smart.

You is important.

          I am no personal trainer.. or nutrition specialist.. I dont claim to be! But I recently lost enough weight, what some might consider as much as compared to a small child or animal.. 40lbs. I want people to know its possible and that if the want to they can do it. People keep asking me what diet I am doing or the best is when they ask, " Whats your secret?" ha Ladies and Gents its not a secret.. its called eating healthy and working hard!
          Some background info about me, I am 5 ft & 2 and 1/2 inches short, and have struggled with weight since the 5th grade. I was never severly over weight but definitely on the chunky side.  I was very active and outgoing and felt frustrated as I got older, that I wasnt blessed with a skinny slender body like some others my age. I blamed it on "big bones" which is ridiculous by the way. Being a dancer, I worried about my weight like most teenage girls, but I never felt I had much control because I worked out and never saw results.. I was on my high school drill team and was constantly on the go, but I also ate whatever I wanted and I never watched portions. 
         I realize now had I eaten healthy then, I would have seen results. They aren't joking when they say its 80% your diet and 20% physical activity. 
             6 months ago I reached a weight I had never imagined myself at. I was sitting at a wrestling tournament ( my family's sport) watching my little brother. I looked up to watch the next match which was 170 lbs.. and it hit me like a semi truck. Those big bulky guys I watched wrestle around on the mat weighed the same as 5 ft 2 1/2 not so little me.. And most of theirs was muscle. I felt so disgusted with myself and I also felt so out of control. I hated it and it was definitely my turning point. Don't think that this was easy, I have tried all the fad diets and tricks before, but this time was different.
       I was so inspired to change, to reach my goal. I completly changed my life. I realized hating myself and my body would get me no where. I couldn't propell myself on disgust and hate so I decided to write a list of things I loved about my body and hang it on my mirror to remind myself every morning. I still read through them 6 months later and eventually have added more and more!
       I am so happy.. which is silly because I am the same person I was 40lbs ago, and its not so much that I am skinnier and feel more comfortable in clothes, and its not the confidence, because I had that before...although it did improve! I think I am more happy because of the satisfaction that I put my mind to something and wanted it so much and worked so hard and accomplished it! Its an amazing feeling and I hope that I can help inspire others not just in getting healthy but to reach for whatever you want and work hard for it, because no matter what if its important to you, its worth it!!!

Blogging is more confusing than facebook.. but it looks fun and I am always up for a challenge!!

I will take any advice and tips to make my blogging journey more successful : ]

I am a Pinterest QUEEN.. not bragging I should actually be a little embarrassed, but I am not. I will embrace it and run with it.. maybe incorporate my finds from there to here!

Who knows what my blog will turn up and into.. we all shall find out in due time!!


      Until next time,
      Live loud and full of Love!!!