Back in the saddle again!

I was just whining to my hubby and a best friend yesterday that my scale is stuck at 177.6.  My husband gently reminded me that I've been eating candy corn the last few weeks and enjoying my birthday.  My friend reminded me that the scale will start to move again.

I have maintained my weight by remaining faithful to my workouts and in an effort to step it up a notch or two I started a Baby Boot Camp class last week that is kicking my rear.   I've been lazy the past several weeks about logging all my food intake (I'm a mom, a busy one so it's getting more difficult to stay disciplined and get on the computer to enter what I'm eating) but last week I buckled back down and have once again been logging what I eat which always, always helps me.

So here it is!

It's moving! I've lost 2 pounds and am .6 away from a 25 pound loss! This is just the motivation I needed this morning.  I only have about 10 pounds before I should be able to wear my wedding rings and that's my next goal...to be able to wear them for the holiday season!

Let's do this thing!

I hate my scale!

I got up this morning and weighed in and the scale read 177 which meant a one pound loss.  I walked through the house to get my camera which took all of 30 seconds, got back on the scale and it said 177.6! What? I weighed with and without the camera and the result was the same.  How in the world does one gain .6 of a pound in less than a minute? I'm ticked off but my superhero hubby says at least I lost and didn't gain.  Cheery lemonade maker.

Regardless, .4 pounds lost in a 2 week span isn't great.  I told a friend yesterday I think I'm stalling out again and it's time to kick start the next 10 pound loss.  I work out every other day and my schedule really doesn't allow me to do more than that plus I truly hate exercise so I need to look at my food intake closely this week and see what adjustments I can make.  Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Facing the scale after vacation

I couldn't find my camera this morning! Probably still in luggage somewhere but I did weigh and I can promise you I'm telling the truth.  I lost a pound! The scale reads 178 pounds so despite several eat outs and a slight binge on some delicious zuchinni fries I am really happy with that number! For the first time in my life I used the hotel's fitness center and for the most part made good choices when we dined out opting for things like salad greens with grilled chicken and eating half of what was on my plate.  I like to think that even on my worst food days that I'm still doing better than I was several months ago. 

I would like to share with you a little moment I had while on our trip.  I was coming out of the fitness room which happened to be by the elevators where a couple was waiting.  As I came out of the room the guy actually said to his wife, "looks like she needs to go back in there and get back on".  I turned around because I honestly couldn't believe an adult would say something so cruel and as I turned they both giggled and got on the elevator.  Man, that stung! But I have been a little compelled to think about the areas in my life where my words can deliver a stinging blow.  I would never of course intentionally want to hurt anyone but I know there have been times where my pride and arrogance take root and I speak when I should not.  I've been praying that the comment would not bog me down and I know that the God of the universe created me and loves me and therefore it doesn't matter what redneck elevator man and his wife think of me, what matters is what God thinks of me.  But I've asked Him to let me see this as an opportunity for growth to remember that words can wound.  And I will keep "getting back on" the workout equipment not because of any pressure I feel from others but because I am fiercely determined to get healthy...inside and out!

XOXO,
Steph

Wednesday weigh in

When I'm not scrubbing red paint from walls or crayon marks off of carpets or riding up and down elevators to satisfy a little boy's longing for adventure I am a woman who is trying to get healthy and get the weight off! That's not easy people.  Most nights I'd much rather just play with my family or clean the house instead I get in the car and drive to the rec center where I watch re-runs of Law & Order or Seinfeld while sweating off calories.

It's paying off. I keep telling myself that.  I lost .6 pounds last week for a grand total loss to date of 21 pounds. 

I'd love to stay and gloat and listen to your jokes about my feet or my grubby scale but my son's latest obsession is slamming doors which usually results in things falling off walls and smashed little fingers.  I hear him now...bam! I'm off!

I've lost 20 pounds this summer!

It's a big morning of celebration for me because I've met my first goal of losing 20 pounds!!!

Wahoooo!!! We're in the groovy decade of the 70's and I couldn't be more thrilled right now.  Of course I have a long way to go but I must admit, I'm really proud of the changes I've made and habits broken this summer.

My next goal is another 20 pounds and I'm hoping, fingers crossed that I'll be able to get my wedding and engagement rings back on by holiday time (end of November)!!! Thanks for all your continuing support and kind words!

love,
Steph

I don't have a thing to wear!

Y'all, I had the shopping blues on Saturday night...bad.  My superhero hubby is taking me to Dragonfly at Hotel Za Za (my favorite restaurant in this city) and I have shrunk (is shrunk a word?) out of my dressier outfits.  What woman wouldn't jump at the chance to go shop? This one. I've honestly never been much of a shoppy (is shoppy a word?) type gal, I don't take great pleasure in spending all day at a mall but when I was smaller I could at least walk in a store, snag a top and pants and check out without having to try anything on.  But I have to try things on now.

After looking in two of my favorite usual shopping spots I came out empty handed and on the verge of tears in public. The thing is I wasn't even feeling defeated about my size or how I looked so much as I couldn't even find something I wanted to try on!  I feel like a lot of the clothes in the stores are geared towards the super young and no offense, look hoochie (is hoochie a word?) OR they are geared towards older ladies and I'm just not ready for all elastic pants and matching velour outfits. I'm also not willing to spend a massive amount of my hubby's hard earned money on an outfit that I will shrink (shrink is definately a word!) out of in another 2 months so that also limits me to where I look.  And did y'all know that southwest prints are in? Apparently they are and I totally missed the memo but I saw them everywhere I went and I feel like I could just drape a saddleblanket on myself and call it a day.

After some extremely encouraging words from girlfriends I took a deep breath and tried again this afternoon. SCORE! I'm actually completely stoked now about Friday night, I found something that is classy and sparkly and I was thrilled that the pants I bought are a size 14! I was a size 18/20 at the beginning of this journey so my hard work is definately paying off. 

And so, I no longer have the shopping blues and cannot tell my hubby that I have absolutely nothing to wear and I'm happy about that.

Mommy moments

I'm almost embarrassed to write any of this but I just feel in the depths of my soul that I'm not alone and that all or most of my other mom friends have experienced moments so sitcom inspired we just have to laugh at it all or we'll lock ourselves in a bathroom with a bag of miniature butterfingers and cry.

This morning started off.  And by that I mean just that, off.  W woke up at 5:40 am crying for his pacifier that had rolled underneath his bed at some point in the night (yes, I still give my son a pacifier at 29 months after we tried really hard for one whole evening to break him of the habit).  I never got back to sleep but was happy that W did so I got up and enjoyed the quiet morning hours with my coffee, breakfast and prayer time.  I felt great and ready to face the day.  I guess God knew I would need that prayer time because from the minute W woke up again he's been well, 2. And sometimes 2 is rotten. Thankfully, we had a sweet friend over for the morning to play with and distract us from our foul 2 year old mood and once our friend left we loaded up in the "big red car" as W. refers to it and we drove to Rockwall to visit another friend.

On our way back home with a car full of previously loved toys that our Rockwall friend gifted us we pulled into a Sonic to get an ice cream for the boy and some apples and caramel dip for momma.  At this point we are both in great moods because we love driving around and are very excited about our inherited loot piled high in the car.  For whatever sleep deprived reason, I went with the ice cream cone for W because the ice cream cup was 29 cents more.  What? Yeah, I'm a moron.  Cone in his little paw, apples and caramel sauce in my lap we get back on the highway and head back home over the "water bridge" to look for "boats"! 

W. with his mammoth sized ice cream cone at the Sonic parking lot.

You do know what's coming right? Total chaos, that's right.  About 13 minutes later W. yells "no more" and I turn to see that is he done with his cone but the cone is nowhere near being completely eaten.  Now, if  I'd gotten the cup I could have just taken it and set it in a cup holder but noooooo, I wanted to save 29 big whopping cents! I turn quickly, grab the cone before he hurls it to the floorboard and toss my caramel sauce packet onto the seat next to me...you got it, right onto my phone.  I'm maneuvering my way over the bridge while my son who is covered in ice cream attempts to start digging in bags of toys and get them all yucked up.  I've got a melting cone in one hand, caramel sauce on my phone when I hear bzzzz. bzzzzz. I turn to see a ginormous bumble bee flying around the inside of our car! Ahhhh! So I somehow get the window rolled down in the back, the bee flies out and I start eyeing the cars all around me to see when the best time would be to toss, yes toss the melting cone out the window (I'm trying to lose weight remember? And it's completely gross to me to eat my son's slobbery cone, sorry, it just is).  Seconds later I got my chance and there's some vanilla splatter on the side of my car to prove it.  It's at this moment W asks if he can have some tots. Really? *sigh*.

We made it home, everyone has napped and the phone has been cleaned up. I just keep repeating to myself, " I will always get a cup, I will always get a cup.".