Dear Reader-

When someone believes in you… you often walk with your head a little higher.

When someone believes in you… your resolve often grows stronger.

When someone believes in you… your “I think I cans” start turning into “I know I wills”.

Who you surround yourself with is so important.

And we have some amazing people cheering us on… your emails, comments and notes mean so very much to us!

If you don’t have a positive support group in your Year 2 Change goals (or even if you do!) join us on Facebook we will cheer you on

We also have two very awesomesauce (as Puddie would say) companies that have committed to helping us achieve our goals…

Can we talk about companies for a sec?

We’ve all seen the promotional efforts of companies… some are good, a lot are meh and a few are genuinely great… most are well meaning regardless, but sometimes annoying.

However, I have been so blessed to work with companies that get it… they get that I am not going to promote things that I don’t believe in or try to sell my readers on something I don’t like myself. They so get that reviews are about feedback as much — if not more– as promotion.

So when we decided to tackle weight loss as our Year 2 Change challenge, we approached two companies that I have the utmost respect for and that I thought were a unique fit for our challenge…

And then I asked them to help us change our lives.

Most folks know that weight loss boils down to diet and exercise.

So, I contacted my friends at Verizon and asked them if they could help us use technology to track our exercise efforts– logging our workouts with fitness gadgets.

They said yes!

@crisgoode My pleasure. We are thrilled and honored to help you and Hubby!

— Michelle Gilbert (@VZWmichelle) September 20, 2012

And not only did they say yes to helping us track exercise, they also want to help us track our diet as well with their newest smart phones that have the best coverage in the state… Which is great since our current carrier’s phones don’t work very well in the kitchen (them there hills in Indiana are a bit challenging for some towers I guess) let alone when we go to the park or hiking.

So, starting today, Mike and I will be tracking our efforts on the new Droid Razr M’s using our favorite apps (more on that soon) and will be trying out all the great technology that folks can use to lose the weight for GOODe.

And to my point earlier about great companies, Verizon has made it clear- they want our honest opinions of the phones and technology we share with you along our journey and we will oblige.

Lighter side

I also contacted my friends at  Gooseberry Patch and asked if we could work together over the next year to highlight the lighter side of their cookbooks.

I have worked with  Gooseberry Patch for the past 3 years and I adore the company and all the wonderful people there.

Truth be told, I have often loved to indulge on their decadent recipes, however, most of their books have great lighter fare that often gets over looked for their comfort food.

Actually, some of my favorite go-to lighter meals are from the pages of their cookbooks.

That and there are tons of tried and true recipes in their books that could make it on the healthy everyday menu with just a tweak or two… and as it turns out that I am totally up for that challenge! And who knows, we might even catch Mikey in the kitchen with a recipe or two

Oh and not only are they going to be sending us cookbooks as we need them, they also are sending us copies to giveaway to our readers!

Thanks for your support!

@crisgoode @goodeoleboy This is amazing y’all!Super impressed with this.Please keep me posted on your #year2change progress. #TEAMDREW

— Drew Manning (@fit2fat2fit) September 20, 2012

From the companies like GP and Verizon to the author of Fit 2 Fat 2 Fit to great readers like you, we are thrilled to have your support for our challenge and know how precious that kind of support is…

We are going to make you proud on the other side of 365

~C