Time to Blog

It's been a little while since my last post, but I promised someone that I would do it today, so here goes:

I haven't been eating that well at all this week. It's so incredibly stupid how you can get to a whole new low and just sabotage it within a few days. I would really like to understand the psychology behind all that.

I decided yesterday that it was over though, and I did better today...not stellar, but certainly better. I really hate that I seem to have lost some tone in the past few weeks from very little physical activity. The good news is that my doctor said that I can get back to the gym...no restrictions. Yay! Now the question is: do I really want to? Of course I do, but it might be hard to get there the first time (tomorrow). I'm kind of hoping that my little break might have reset something in me, so that I'll see some nice quick results. I know that I've been really concentrating on the direction I'd like to go in. I might even sign up for another boot camp session just to get me back into it all.

Other than that, I've been so incredibly busy with the kids and their school stuff. I really don't know how it's all going to go once I get back to work in just a few short weeks. Hopefully I'm getting into a good routine right now that will help me to stay organized then. I hope I don't have to start going to the gym in the morning, because I can't see that happening. I love my snooze button.

My most exciting news is that I am going to Chicago this weekend to visit the Comment Fairy (aka Kirsten). I seriously cannot wait to get there.

Dally in the Alley

Yesterday we headed out to Dally in the Alley. We parked kind of far out, so it was nice to get in some exercise. Actually, it sucked because I was wearing these sandals with 3 inch heels. Oh well. I was starving when we got there, so the hubby and I went to go grab a bite to eat. I decided on a shish kabob (they actually gave me 2). They were delicious and they were only $5...cheaper than I could even buy uncooked at the grocery store.

The best part was that I got to spend some much needed time with friends. After Dally, we headed over to Twingo's. It was kind of weird, because this is a very nice restaurant that was supposed to be turning into a club of sorts for the night. We ended up ordering food. I wasn't on my best behavior, but I suppose it could have been worse...seafood chowder (broth based) and then smoked mozzarella sticks (yes, they were fried) and an arugula salad. Hopefully the walking and dancing helped to burn off some of the calories.

The club thing was meh. This is a monthly event that we used to go to all the time, but it was at a completely different venue. It just didn't gel in my opinion, so we decided to head over to Corktown Tavern for Hot House. This was much better, but I was exhausted by this point. We stayed for just under an hour before heading home. I mean, it was 2:00 am, but we usually stay till about 4. Oh well... :)

Overall, a good day, but it wasn't magical. I guess you can't create that...it just has to happen.

***Addendum***

I wore a stretchy green top with a short(er) denim skirt. This is probably the first time that I've worn a short skirt since I was 21 maybe? Big step for me.

Clothes Shopping

I met a friend for breakfast this morning. It really was long overdue, and it was nice to get some things cleared up. Good friends can do that. No confrontation really...just areas of irritation. I love my friends, because we keep it real. No drama. Well...very little drama. Anyways, I'm a happy girl today...and I feel so lucky to have so many great friends.

After breakfast, we went to this ghetto clothing store to buy some cheap clothes...I'm talking $3 tops. Unfortunately, we had to deal with the awful staff there. I swear I haven't experienced that bad of service in a long time...AND they only allowed 3 items of clothing at a time in the fitting rooms. Very frustrating. Anyways, it is getting more and more fun to go clothes shopping for the most part. I'm to the point where almost everything looks fine or good or HOT. The only reason some things don't look too great is because of my petite frame. Some regular sizes are ok, but others' waists fall where my hips are. I seriously have one of the shortest torsos I've ever seen.

I really wanted to talk about stretchy clothing today. In the past, I really had to avoid very stretchy tops, because all the stretchy material did was shift my blubber around and make it look worse than where it was in the first place or it just accentuated my belly roll. I think all that is changing now. The stretchy material seems to just hold everything in place now. I ended up buying this halter top thingee...the kind that I'd wear to a club. I don't know that I'll ever actually wear it out, but for $3, I thought I could at least just put it on at home and look at myself in it :) Even the horizontal stripes on it don't seem to make me look fat. It actually looks FAB! My friend was talking on the phone and just stopped talking when she saw me. Ok...you get the point. It looked good. My real point was that the lycra or spandex or whatever it is might be good for me now.

My other point is that it's true that the belly fat is usually the last to go (at least for girls). I still have enough left, but it's nice to see it finally shrinking.

In other exciting news, I get to go out to Detroit tomorrow for fun. Dally in the Alley is going on, and there are a ton of fun afterparties going on. It's been a while since I've been out to the city, so I'm super excited. I just hope it doesn't get rained out.

Random stuff today...

I really am getting upset at the number of obese children I'm seeing around these days. I'm sure I'm just noticing it more because of the kids being back at school. It's one thing for me as an adult to be obese, but to allow my children to get that way is simply not an option. My kids are not skinny by any means, but they are not fat at all. I just think that if my kids were getting fat, I'd be making some serious changes in this house. How can these parents allow this to happen to their kids. I know that some kids are naturally heavier set, but there are so many complete families that are obese. I just don't get it. I've heard people talk about this before, and I've heard all the excuses and the lies...like it's ok to be fat or it's just in our genes to be "heavy". I really don't know if anyone here has obese children, so I apologize if this offends anyone, but it just really saddens me to see so much of it. Some people might think it's unhealthy for kids to worry about their weight and everything, but it is our job as parents to teach them about proper nutrition. I want them to know that being overweight is unhealthy.

Next...I watched the Biggest Loser last night (from my DVR). It was fine, but I thought it was totally stupidly cheesy for them to make the audience say, Did you keep the weight off...with the hostess. Then, they compared their current weight with their starting weight rather than the weight from the end of the season. Of course, they were all thinner than when they started out. Overall, it really was a nothing episode geared toward getting people excited about the new season. Beck and I were talking about the show yesterday...about how it's great they lost the weight and everything, but how hard can it really be when you are sent away to work out for how many hours a day and have all the right food choices right in front of you. We are the real winners here, because we're doing this and incorporating all of these changes into our real lives as we go. This is real...right here...not to take away from their successes of course. I do think that the show played a part in me getting healthy though...as I sat on the couch and watched it, wishing I could be thin. ha! Every little bit of inspiration helps I guess.

Yesterday, I was sitting here at the computer thinking about how bored I was, so I decided to go for a walk. I ended up walking over 5 miles. God that felt great. I'm really sore today though. Funny how it only takes a couple weeks of inactivity to soften some of those muscles that seem to take so long to build. I can't wait to get back to running.

Just a couple cheesy new full body pics...and a fattie before pic

And here's the before pic (again)...

Nothing much to say lately

I haven't posted in a while, but it's not because I've been avoiding...just don't have much to report I guess. I ate more yesterday...probably a little too much, but that's ok. I still feel good.

Yesterday was the first day of school for the kiddies. What a strange but wonderful experience to send all 4 of them away for the whole day :) Of course Audrey was the funniest because it was her first time going to school ever. She's very outgoing, so I knew she would love it. She was so exhausted though and started to fall asleep on the couch after school. I made her dinner and she headed toward the stairs. I asked if she was going to bed and she said yes, good night. ha...at 5 o'clock! Overstimulated I guess. She didn't get up until I turned on her light this morning. This is a new school for them, but they all loved it and already made some friends. It's really nice that I'm not working right now, because I am a little more relaxed without the stress of work. They are at school again right now. Ahhhh...

I ran into our crazy carpooler mom from last year. They switched over to the same school as we did, unfortunately. Anyways, she was a little taken aback at how good I was looking. We carpooled until the middle of June, so it's good to know that even though I haven't lost that many pounds, I must look a lot more toned. I mentioned that I'd like to lose another 15 pounds, but she said she didn't think I should lose more than 5. Not that I care what she thinks. She is crazy after all. I will lose another 15...eventually.

Last week was Audrey's 5th birthday. I just realized this morning that I'm at the weight that I averaged before I had any kids...5 years after the birth of my last one. I don't think there's any real significance attached to that, but it was kind of interesting to me :)

Interesting but fun evening...

I went to my first bachelorette party ever last night. I've been trying to think about why I've never been to one before, and I don't quite know. Maybe I've typically had more male than female friends or maybe my friends never get married - just live together. Then there were the church years...no real bachelorette parties going on there. Overall it was cheesy but fun I guess...penis accessories and all. We went to dinner then hit a couple of clubs. Luckily there were other bachelorette parties going on too, so I didn't feel too embarrassed.

What I really wanted to talk about was a girl that I met at the party last night. She really was so much fun...and absolutely adorable. Do you ever just look at someone and just envy their body? Dumb question. I'm sure we all do. Well, I was extremely envious of her body. It's exactly how I'd like mine to be. There are a lot of times when I'd like to ask people what size they are (so that I can get an idea of what I'd like to be). My inner filter usually prevails though. Last night, I decided to go for it. To my relief, she said she was a 6. Size 6 is only a size down from where I'm at. I can so do this. I'm thinking 10 pounds should get me there. Size 8 is perfectly fine, but 6 is even better...and still curvacious.

I told her that I'd lost a lot of weight, and she told me that she'd lost 60 pounds about 6 years ago. That's always cool to hear. I could tell that she works out by her arms. She said what we've all been saying all along. It's a very simple concept when you get right down to it. Eat the right stuff and exercise. Simple.

There was a point in the conversation that she thought I said I wanted to lose 20 pounds, and she looked at me like I was crazy. Then she said that I was already really small. The fact is that I would like to lose another 20 pounds if I could, but it's always cool to hear someone say that I don't need to...especially someone that already has what I'd consider a perfect body.

Anyways, this might be just the inspiration that I need to get me past this 10 pound hurdle. I can't wait till I can exercise again. I was really on the right track before my surgery. Luckily, I've not been doing anything to backtrack during my down time, but I still probably have another month before I go back to work. I might be hitting some of you up for advice on Full-Assing it into a size 6. Of course, knowing that Rebecca's buying some 8's helps too :)