Our Cruise was beyond Words!

The cruise was absolutely amazing! I had planned and researched and dreamed of how the cruise would be for months…and it was everything I’d hoped for and so much more! We left that Thursday around 4pm and drove to Gainesville and spent the night. Had planned to stay in Lake City but decided to go a little farther and make the drive time the next morning even less. Drove to Kennedy Space Center the next morning and spent about 5 or 6 hours there. It was a great day and we learned so much. The add-on special tour we bought was great and we got to go to the launch pads and things so the kids took a lot away from the experience. I don’t really have much interest in the space program, but I even enjoyed the day. We checked into our hotel after that, did a little running around, and spent the afternoon/evening chilling out and relaxing by the pool. Jess also got to work more on her homework. Saturday we boarded the shuttle at noon for the ½ mile ride to the Carnival Glory. We’d already driven down earlier and seen the ship while we were out for breakfast. =D Embarkation process went quite smoothly and we were on the ship in about 30 minutes or so. Headed up to the Lido deck for some lunch and then spent some time walking around the ship and checking things out. The Disney Magic was next to our ship in port so we got some neat views of it as well. Not as big as our ship but still impressive. Around 1:30 we finally got to head to our stateroom and while small, it was quite cozy and well laid out. We headed up to the Lido deck for the sail away party, went to the meet-and-greet for Circle C (the kids activity group), then went to our first dinner at 6pm. Our wait staff was amazing and the food was delicious! The Circle C activities started around 8pm and we didn’t see the girls until around 1am when Circle C ended for the evening. Gary and I went to the show that evening which was fun. Sunday was our first Day at Sea. Gary and I were up early and went up on deck to take a walk and enjoy the sights. We saw the kids off and on during the day but they were busy with Circle C and new friends. That evening was our first Elegant Dinner so we got all dressed up and had pictures made before we ate. It was shrimp and lobster night and it was delicious! Monday was our day in Cozumel and we had a blast. We did the Twister boat ride to Passion Island. Twister is a high speed boat that does fast turns and twists and 360’s in the water. You get soaked but it was a blast. Once we got to the Island we had a wonderful meal and then spent the day playing in the water, jumping off the water trampoline, kayaking, paddle boats, etc. Went back to the ship, cleaned up, and headed into Cozumel for some shopping. Tuesday we were in Belize. Went snorkeling at Goff’s Caye and had an amazing time and learned so much at the same time! We were snorkeling the 2nd largest coral reef in the world so that was a pretty awesome experience! Back to the ship to clean up and then grabbed a tender to Belize City for shopping. Also hate lunch at a restaurant called Mamasita’s. The food was tasty but a little more bland than I expected. Wednesday we were in Costa Maya where we did a Mayan Culture Experience tour. We rode a bus to Limones where we went to a Mayan ruin, spent some time touring the area, and then went to the home of a Mayan couple. There we had a traditional Mayan lunch prepared by them and learned a lot of things about their lifestyles. Again, we learned so much and the food was absolutely amazing! When we got back to the port city of Mahamaul we did some shopping before going back to the ship. The girls had a blast with the “game” of bartering for the things they wanted. Thursday was another sea day so we had time to relax a bit. It was also another elegant evening as well as our 16th anniversary. Gary had set it up with the room steward for our nightly towel animal to be a monkey which was a nice surprise. He also bought me a sapphire necklace/bracelet/earring set for our anniversary and it is beautiful. I wore them to dinner that night and loved them! Friday was our day in Nassau and the weather was quite nasty when we arrived. Thankfully it rained and thundered for about 30 minutes and then cleared up. We spent the day at Blackbeard’s Caye swimming/snorkeling/feeding/petting the stingrays and had a great time. What an experience! Afterwards we did a little shopping and then headed back to the ship. We decided to skip dinner in the dining room and instead ate the buffet. Saturday came and it was time for debarkation. Went smoothly again and we were off the ship by 9:30 and on our way home by 10am. Got to the house around 5pm that afternoon. I was afraid the week would fly by but was surprised that it didn’t. I think it was probably the best vacation we’ve ever had and definitely a 2nd honeymoon to remember! Now we’re already in the planning stages of a cruise next August and Gary said he’d liked to find a 3 day to do before that. We’re hooked now! Lol The kids program is excellent on Carnival! The girls stayed busy with dance parties, movie nights, scavenger hunts, sports activites, game parties, pizza making things, ice cream eating contests, etc. The Circle C activities went until 12:30 or 1am every night! Gary and I had time with them, but also had plenty of time alone as well. Definitely recommend!! Now the countdown has begun to Cruise #2 already being planned for next summer!

My younger daughter will her dress

This is the black dress my younger daughter (turns 12 on Thursday) picked out for the cruise. It comes to about mid-thigh I guess and looks adorable on her. She also loves the red one my older daughter picked and has visions of one day wearing it too.

My oldest in her first formal wear....

My oldest daughter picked this black formal for our cruise in September and we caught it half off at the mall after prom season and got it for just $85.

While it isn't my style by any means, I must admit it looks beautiful on her!

Of course, then a few weeks later when we were at our local Ross store at the mall, she found another one she loved (the red one). I reminded her that she already had her formal dress for the cruise (she'll be wearing another dress she already had for the 2nd formal night). She quickly said "but this one is ONLY $25 and I'll wear it to some of the formal dances in high school and you won't have to buy one for a lot more". This reasoning actually made me stop in my tracks and agree to go ahead and let her have the 2nd dress too. I also reasoned that my younger daughter likes it too and MAYBE, just MAYBE she'll want to wear it too. Plus I knew that I'd never get another deal like that and if for nothing else than future cruises, it would be worth the cost. Boy,,,they grow up so fast....

Its June and its HOT...but I'm still surviving...

It’s been awhile since my last post, but life has continued on much the same. I did write out a long post last week, but as soon as I hit "post", it disappeared into cyber space never to be seen or heard from again. I’ve been staying busy with work and enjoying the kids being out of school...as when THEY have no school it means mom has no school (i.e. no homework to check, no projects to assist with, etc.)! They are like babies with their days and nights mixed up...they stay up most (if not all) night watching tv and playing games, then sleep half the next day while dad and I are at work. Lazy bums! Lol We went camping over the weekend and had a blast. Now mind you, we live in Northwest Florida and the temps are already averaging in the high 90s every day with heat index pushing 110+! Two years ago the idea of me camping, in a TENT, in the middle of JUNE...well, I’d have thought you were nuts! And here I am now not only doing it, but having a blast! What wonderful memories we are creating with our children. I have such fond memories of camping at the beach when I was young, and its nice that my girls will have similar memories. My parents and brother’s family joined us so it was a lot of fun. I have noticed that once again I have gotten lax about my eating and notice I snack a lot more than I should. Today was my day to get back on track and cut all that crap out...yet another reminder of why the scale is my friend as when I saw that number this morning it was my reality check. Just the thing I need every once in awhile. Within a week or so I’ll be back to where I want to be so I’m not too upset. Paid the final cruise payment yesterday and we are down to 75 days until the cruise now! I cannot wait! I already have my formal dresses and the girls now have theirs as well. As promised I’ll be posting pics soon of us in them...I just keep forgetting. Hope you all are continuing to make progress on your own journey!

Still Maintaining...

It's been quite awhile since my last post, but all continues to go well. Had a scare last month with the work situation, as our company had layoffs. Thankfully they said seniority would NOT be considered, rather it was work quality and how much we do....they followed thru and I kept my job while someone with 18+ years did not. (I only have 8.5 years) I hate it for anyone who loses their job, but THANK GOD it wasn't me!!! For the most part I continue to maintain my 137/138 weight which I'm quite happy with. A couple of weeks ago I did stray from my normal routine and ate WAY more than I should at several family functions. I paid for it on the scale when I saw 144.6 for the first time in over a year. This was my mini-reality check and I quickly got back to basics and was back down to 138 within a week. This was again proof to me that the scale really is my friend, even if I don't always like the number. It helps me realize when enough it enough and I need to get more firmly focused back on staying away from too many snacks. The kids are keeping us busy with end of the year school activities and only have about 2-1/2 weeks left until summer vacation. No big plans, they are just looking forward to relaxing and spending a lot of time at the beach. We took them last night to find new swimsuits for the cruise, and they both have their eyes on a new formal at the mall for one of the cruise dinner nights. Told them we may go back in a few weeks and let them try them on and pick one out (after Prom season when they go on sale). Thats about it for us...hope you all continue to trudge along well on your own weight loss journey.

I'm Going Cruising!!!

Yep,,,,I booked our anniversary cruise on Carnival Glory for September and the countdown has begun. I am so very excited! 7 days on a beautiful ship with hubby and our girls with port visits to Nassau, Belize, Cozumel, and Costa Maya. I suspect the next 5 months will drag at a snail's pace! lol While I dread all the amazing foods the ships are known to have, I certainly will allow myself to indulge within reason. Hubby and I have made a vow to make use of the ship gym every day and also to do plenty of walking, both on the ship and in the ports. I told him that since I have been easily maintaining 136/137 for the past few months, I think I'd like to work hard to get back down to at least 130 if not lower before the cruise. I don't necessarily want to "maintain" that weight as I am happy with where I'm at, BUT I figure if I do it then I'll feel more comfy with the cruise splurges. lol In the coming months I"ll be on the lookout for a sexy little evening dress for one of the formal nights as I already have one for the second night. Have any of you been on a cruise...if so, please share your thoughts...what you liked, didn't like, things we "must do/see".

One of Many Reasons Americans are Overweight....

The Class A West Michigan Whitecaps have come up with possibly the most unhealthy ballpark food item in baseball history: the Fifth Third Burger.Named after the bank that sponsors the team, the Fifth Third features 26.7 ounces (five-thirds pounds) of beef, lettuce, tomato, salsa, sour cream, chili and Fritos on an 8-inch sesame seed bun. Total calories: 4,889.The burger costs $20, but the team points out it feeds one to four. A single fan who finishes the burger in one sitting will receive a Fifth Third Burger T-shirt.Mickey Graham, the team's director of marketing, told CNBC he thinks some fans will show up just for the feeding: "We've had people come just for dinner. We take our food pretty seriously."

Its simply unreal to me how I'm sure many people will be tempted to try to scarf down this burger to win a darn t-shirt...or simply because it sounds good to them. Never mind the 5000 calories they'll be consuming! At a time when you can look around our country and see so many overweight people, it annoys me to see businesses coming up with this sort of thing. Heck, even if four people split it, they'd each be consuming nearly 1250 calories.

Spring

The weather has finally been beautiful and it has been wonderful getting out and enjoying it. I met my friend to walk 5 miles yesterday and will be meeting the family after work to do another 5 miles. I can honestly say that I love to walk! Wish I could say I love the gym, but I've come to the conclusion that will never happen. Since my mother reached her own weight loss goal she has started eating more. She has been shocked to find that she continued to lose weight, although I wasn't. I kept telling her she needed to be eating more than she was, but she simply wouldn't listen. So even though she was eating MORE, she actually has been weighing around 143 or so, some days even 141.5. I noticed the same thing when I was trying to lose the last few pounds. I finally figured I was going to go ahead and increase my calories to stop losing and shock, I lost another 3 pounds which put me at 124/125. Since I have been maintaining, as I posted before I found this weight was harder to maintain and I still had to watch my calories quite closely. Not something I really wanted to do for the rest of my life. Don't get me wrong, I always weigh daily and watch my calories accordingly, but I want to be able to eat the pastas and things, just in moderation. By setting my maintenance a little higher, I found that I could eat the things I wanted (in moderation) and easily maintain. Mom is finding this same thing. She was a bit frustrated this morning because she was at 146 even though she ate less yesterday than she did the days before. I told her not to worry about it and since she is up a bit, watch the calories a little closer this week. Getting used to maintaining as opposed to losing is different, but something she'll grow accustomed to just as I did,,,just as you all will when you reach your own goals.

Rainy Days

While we needed some rain, I hated that it pretty much rained all weekend. I'd had plans to go to the local trail and do a 5 mile walk on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and wasn't able to do any of them. Have plans to do it this afternoon too, but it isn't looking good at the moment. The weekend was a busy one but at least there was a little down time too. Friday I spent 2 hours at the doctor's office with my oldest daughter and then at the hospital waiting for an x-ray on her wrist. Earlier in the week she took a spill when the rope on the tire swing broke and her wrist wasn't getting any better. Figured better safe than sorry. Thankfully they called later that day to say the x-rays were normal. Took her back to school and set up with the office that she was to ride the bus home with a friend for a sleepover. She called me after school to say the office never delivered the note so she couldn't get on the other bus. Came home and mom got to get out again to take her to the sleepover. Saturday had to pick her up and go to the local Arts Festival where her chorus group was singing (thankfully the rain held off for awhile). Afterwards she asked to stay for awhile and hang out with her friends and they would bring her home. Got home and sat down, she called to ask me to come get her because it was raining and they weren't going to bring her home after all. Ugh! Back to the festival and back home in time for her other friend to arrive to stay the night. Worked on school projects yesterday as both girls had them. This was an experience....I'd be helping one at the computer and the other was yelling from the dining room that she needed help. After numerous times like that I had a mini-mommy-meltdown and reminded them that I am only one person and cannot possibly be in two places at once and to please have patience. Both projects did get finished thankfully! lol Dieting went well over the weekend and I have been holding pretty at 135 or a little less for the last week which I'm thrilled about. My mom has now officially reached her goal as well at around 142/144 so I am so very happy for her! Go mom!

Spring and Longer Days....

What a wonderful title! I am so excited about warmer weather and longer days! I notice in the winter months that I don't walk nearly as much as I do when the days are longer and I am looking forward to hitting the local trail a lot more often now that I have more daylight hours. The warmer weather also means I can soon start fiddling around in my flower beds more which will give added exercise. The best part is that I feel pretty much back to normal except for a little sinus stuff thats hanging around. My poor parents are STILL sick and its been about a month for them! I feel so sorry for them and hope they are better soon. The weight maintenance continues to go well and I am just happy as can be. My body has settled into a 136/137 zone which is a little higher than I ideally wanted, but this seems to work and seems pretty easy for me to happily maintain. I have found it easy to stay at that weight in spite of weekly after church visits to Baskin Robbins with my family or nightly popcorn snacks while watching tv with my sweet hubby or even on nights of too much pizza or onion rings (it was good though lol). I "liked" being at 130 but I had to work much harder and be alot more strict to stay there. Once I start walking more I am curious to see if I can continue to eat this way and slowly crawl back toward 130, but if not, I could quite easily and quite happily live the rest of my life maintaining at this weight knowing that I don't have to say no when I want pasta or cookies with the kids. I have a really good friend that is trying to lose weight now and finding it difficult to find the will power to get a good start. I told her that being really strict with yourself at the beginning was what helped me out, knowing that in the end, I'd be able to relax and enjoy things more later. I hope she starts to see lower scale numbers soon.

And...Still Sick

Actually, my first bout with this crap only lasted 4 days or so and then I thought it was behind me. Then hubby got sick. And now I'm sick again! Ugh! Yesterday I felt like a truck ran over my head but managed to work all day in spite of it. Went straight home afterwards and climbed into bed for the rest of the night. Hubby brought me supper in bed and I went back to sleep after eating. I feel a little better today and he says I look better (though considering how bad I looked yesterday it didn't take much to be an improvement lol). My poor parents are still fighting it all as they have been without a break for the last 3 weeks! I can't imagine feeling like this for that long. Unfortunately since we have all been sick, I still haven't been back to the gym! In 3 weeks! Gasp! The only exercise I have done in 3 weeks is one 5 mile walk. I am so ready for Spring weather, longer days (which reminds me...don't forget to set clocks ahead this weekend), and more time to be outside in the fresh air. Provided that I continue to feel better I'll be walking this weekend and back to the gym next week. I have to applaud people who are committed to working out even when they are sick. I'm not one of them. I just want to sleep. On a different note, hubby made homemade beer battered onion rings last night with supper. Yep, they were horribly bad for me, but they were quite tasty. More please. lol I managed to not go back for seconds so it was still a successful meal.

Sick and Tired

No...really. I'm sick and tired! =D When we returned from Parris Island I was having back issues as a result of the hotel bed from hell which lasted about a week. The very day my back felt better I came down with the sickness crud that was plaguing the rest of my extended family. Between those two things I haven't graced the inside of either of my gyms in almost 2 weeks, though I did walk 5 miles last weekend before going straight back home and falling into bed for the rest of the weekend. The gym is on my "To Do" list for tomorrow but who knows if it will really and truly happen. Just being honest! While I do feel better today I also am simply exhausted. No big weekend plans so at this point my "plan" is to veg out, continue taking my meds, watch lots of sappy Lifetime movies, and throw in a little housework here and there since hubby has graciously done most everything during the last two week hurt/sick period. Lately I have been noticing that my body has kind of seemed to settled around the 137 area. I'm happy with that though prefer to be around 130ish. Now that the days are starting to get longer and I should be able to start walking more maybe I'll see that number again soon. If not, as long as I'm in the 130s then I'm okay with that. Lifestyle is good....I eat pretty healthy most of the time but do eat bad here and there, indulge in desserts in moderation, and I'm still maintaining. I think thats what its all about in the end.

Busy but Nice Weekend

The last week has been busy but enjoyable all around. Last week was my nephew's Marine boot camp graduation at Parris Island, SC. The day before we were to leave, my hubby called me at work to say his work had cancelled his vacation and he wouldn't be able to join us on the trip to SC. I was mad!!! The idea of cancelling it was bad enough, but to wait until the day before! Just made me want to beat someone! lol The girls and I instead joined my parents for the 7 hour drive. We arrived at 1am on Thu. morning and got very little sleep before getting up and heading to the base for Family Day. My "very little sleep" was probably only 30 minutes or so because my daughter had a horrible cough that no meds were quieting! Ugh! Nothing worse than being exhausted and confined to a hotel room with a coughing child who's had all the meds you can give her and they still aren't working. Well, actually, there really is "worse" but at the time it sure didn't feel like it. Family Day was wonderful. My nephew looked awesome!

We spent the whole day with him on base having lunch, shopping for all sorts of "my nephew/son/grandson/brother/cousin is a Marine" shirts at the Exchange, visiting the museum, checking out his barracks, and just enjoying finally being able to see him after 3 months apart. The hours passed liked minutes and before long it was time to say goodbye for the day, but not before we took more pics!

The next morning we were back at Parris Island bright and early for his official graduation! He had done awesome and was the high shooter for his platoon. They asked him if he wanted to go to sniper school but he turned down the offer. His heart is into working on vehicles and he didn't want to do something else. After the ceremony and a quick lunch, we headed back home. Long drive but I was so glad to be back with my hubby that night. We had a wonderful Valentines Day where he spoiled me as always, and a nice cookout for my nephew yesterday. I pretty much ate what I wanted to during the last week and the scales have reflected that, but thats okay. I know what to do now so its back to the grind! Hope each of you had a wonderful weekend too.

Michael I love you dearly and I am soooooo very proud of you!!!!!!!!!!!!

Light Bulb Moment

A couple of months ago while blogging about having a day or two where I'd been constantly hungry and ready to eat anything in sight, I wondered if it might possibly have something to do with TOM. I had planned to notice the following month to see if there was a pattern I'd just never paid attention to before. Well, the following month when my visitor came, I was on vacation and pretty much not eating all that great anyway. No answer. Well, yesterday I was again having one of those days. I did pretty good all day (except for a piece of Bavarian Creme King Cake my co-worker brought back from her Louisiana trip over the weekend...BAD BAD Co-Worker!! lol), ate a nice healthy supper hubby had lovingly prepared. And then disaster struck. It started with the Dove chocolate bar he brought me from the store. Not bad in itself, 200 calories, so definitely do-able. But then, I was still hungry and had some Honey BBQ chicken bites, a granola bar, a peanut butter sandwich, and a few chips among other odds and ends. Finally he walked past me, saw me with the chips, said "NO WAY" and took them bye-bye. As he did it he said I'm doing what you told me to do. GO GARY!! With that little slap on the hand, my food-fest was over. Thank God! Too bad I didn't go get him earlier. lol Oh well, the damage was done, I felt pretty miserable, time to move on. All this is to say, this morning, TOM came and wah-lah...I have my answer. I now fully realize that these urges to eat, eat, eat are occuring during this time period. Next month I am going to try to not only recognize it for what it is (hormones and all that crap), but try to STOP it in its tracks. Eating just because of THAT is certainly NO real reason to eat. No clue how but the scales were not as merciless as I expected this morning. Today is a new day and I am back on target...I also got to start my new work hours today so I'll be getting off at 4:30 rather than 6pm each day. This will give me time to go home and walk like I used to which I'm really excited about!

Good Day

While I didn't go to the gym yesterday or do the Wii Fit, it was still a great day food-wise. I plan to go to the gym in the morning on my way to get groceries so while it isn't the 4 times each week I'd planed, it will be 3 and that is acceptable since this week I had to attend a seminar that prevented my going during lunch today. I've got to strive to be better on the Wii Fit next week as it's Thursday and I didn't get on it a single time so far this week. Maybe I'll try that tomorrow night at least. I will definitely meet my walking goal on Saturday when I meet a friend to go on the local Trail. Next week my work hours are going to change and I'll get off at 4:30 each day rather than 6pm. Wonderful news! This will mean I get home so much earlier and have time to start walking every day again! My last goal was to limit myself to only 2 days of dessert or junk in general during the week, and so far, my only day for that was last Sunday when I had a small ice cream cone with fat free ice cream. The scales showed 134.4 this morning so I am now back inside my weight maintenance range and thrilled about it. 130 is getting a little closer every day! I also had my yearly work review this morning and it was wonderful, so definitely something to be proud of on that front. Hope you had a good day too!

Goal Update

In short, my goals are:
1. Work out at Curves at least twice a week SO FAR ONCE THIS WEEK
2. Work out at Riviera at least twice a week SO FAR ONCE THIS WEEK
3. Walk at least 5 miles each week SO FAR 3 MILES
4. Work out on Wii Fit at least three times each week NONE
5. Limit myself to having desserts/evening snacks twice a week and then IN MODERATION!!
ONCE ON SUNDAY

The scale actually said 135.6 this morning which is up a little but I'm not concerned. I ate wonderfully yesterday and even had baby carrots instead of chips and dip as everyone else had with supper. No complaints just continuing on the course!

So far, so good & A Kick in the Butt too

Yesterday's meals were 100% on target. No bad food of any kind. Today the scale was down to 135.4 so "technically" I am 135 and back in my "range" I'd set for maintenance. However, that certainly isn't to say I can slack off. Nope, I want to be back around 130...the middle of my range. Enough of the splurging and enjoying too many of the things that SHOULD have been the occasional treat. I also know I need to focus my attention back to exercise which I can often be bad about not doing. Last year, until the days got shorter, I was walking ALOT (80 to 120 miles each month) on top of going to the gym at least 3 times a week. When the time changed that commitment also changed. I started out by continuing to walk on weekends and pretty soon, I wasn't doing it at all. I also wasn't being as faithful about the gym as I should have been. But I have recommitted to being better about my exercise! I am going back to Curves (my insurance started paying for it again) twice a week with my mother and I am also planning to go to my other gym (the one I actually pay for) twice a week. On top of that, yesterday I made plans with a friend to start meeting to walk every Saturday morning at 7:30am. Hubby and I had started doing the Wii Fit every night at home as well, but unfortunately that can be time consuming when I don't get off work until 6pm. I think a better plan would be to shoot for doing it at least 3 times a week as well. This is definitely do-able and is something I am going to push myself to complete. If I get more, great. If I don't do 3 times, I'll ask one of my kids for a swift kick in the butt. I am also going back to being more strict with myself. While I am at goal and CAN be more flexible and enjoy the sweets in moderation, I want to make a goal to limit myself to only a couple of days each week where I will partake of such things. With all of these things working together, I should find myself back at 130 in no time if I stay the course....
In short, my goals are:
1. Work out at Curves at least twice a week
2. Work out at Riviera at least twice a week
3. Walk at least 5 miles each week
4. Work out on Wii Fit at least three times each week
5. Limit myself to having desserts/evening snacks twice a week and then IN MODERATION!!

I plan to post every day to track my progress on meeting those goals so I can hold myself accountable. Just because I am in the weight maintenance part of my journey I don't want to get too lax and forget that my body STILL needs the exercise that got me here! Have you set any goals for yourself lately?

Trip, Weight, and Swimsuits

Our weekend trip to Panama City Beach was wonderful as it always is. The weather was reasonably nice considering it's January, and we had a lot of fun in the indoor pool area. Most of our meals were cooked in the room so I did great on that aspect. We took popcorn and fruit with us so most of my snacks consisted of those items. I did enjoy some chips and a candy bar, but I made sure to go for a long walk/run on the beach to work some of it off. The end result...the scale this morning said 135.6 so I am down 0.4 lbs from Thursday morning! I had a big smile when I saw that number. lol The biggest shock of the trip however occurred BEFORE we left. On Friday while the kiddies were in school and hubby was working, I did some errands. One of those errands was to find a new swimsuit as my old one was way too big and the family kept telling me it looked really bad. I found my usual one piece at the store to try on, and just for grins, grabbed a 2 piece as well. Figured I'd be able to tell my husband that at least I tried one on and it simply wasn't happening. lol I put the one piece on and liked it a lot. Then came the moment of truth...the first time I'd put on a 2 piece in YEARS! Well....I liked it!! Holy Cow! I even smiled at my reflection in the mirror! This prompted me to try on another one. I liked it too!!! I was just short of jumping up and down in the dressing room. Me...the woman who swore she'd never be back into a 2 piece suit...was wearing one and liking it. I couldn't decide on which I liked better so I bought both! Couldn't shake the stupid grin off my face the rest of the day. And let's just say, hubby was really appreciative too! lol It was such a feeling of freedom to walk around the resort in those new swimsuits feeling perfectly comfortable. It's a feeling I didn't expect to have when I started this journey, so it's something that shocked me. I know I've lost a lot of weight and in clothes, I've thought I looked good. But as most of you know, the skin doesn't always firm up as much as we'd like after having been so stretched out for years. THIS alone is the main reason I never expected I'd be able to wear a 2 piece suit. Now I attained another goal I'd wanted but never thought I'd reach, and again, the feeling I have gotten just strengthened my resolve to make sure I never again gain weight! I hope you all feel the same way as you continue to meet your own goals!

So far, so good

While I did post about "getting back to the grind" on Monday, and I did eat well all day...I had the munchies that night and had popcorn and the last piece of red velvet cake. Yum! No more tempting sweets in the house so that's a plus and no desire to buy more anytime soon. The last two days had been 100% on target with my eating, and while I haven't gone to the gym since Monday, that's okay too. The scale this morning showed 136.0 so I am just one little pound away from being back within the maintenance area I set for myself...barely in it, but that's acceptable anyway. Eating has gone well today, and while we will be having dinner out tonight to celebrate my mother's birthday, I plan to make my usual healthy choice at the restaurant. My dad is also bringing a cake for us to have after dinner, and I am only going to eat a couple of bites...not even an entire piece. If I hadn't been having sweet issues lately I'd have my normal size piece and enjoy it guilt-free, but for now, a couple of bites is all I'll have. Tomorrow after picking the kids up from school, we're going to head over to spend a weekend getaway at a resort we enjoy at Panama City Beach. All of the rooms have kitchens so the plan is to take healthy food choices with us and to cook/eat in the room. That way we can enjoy the trip but not over-indulge. Hopefully with all the swimming and walking on the beach I'll even come back weighing less which is always a treat after being away from home for a few days. I also made our hotel reservations for next month for our trip to South Carolina. My nephew is graduating from Marine Corps boot camp at Parris Island and I simply cannot wait to see him!! I know the 10 days leave he will have after boot camp will pass much too quickly but I plan to enjoy it and am counting down the days! Good luck with your continued healthy food choices...and remember, stay focused on the end!

Back to the Grind

I have noticed in the last month that I have gotten much more lax about my eating and have been allowing myself WAY more junk food than I need. Thankfully I haven't had any of the days where I just want to eat anything that gets in my way, but my routine has changed and I need to make the necessary modifications to continue my weight maintenance. My routine changed because we were on vacation the last week of December/first part of January and then returned home to my husband going back to day shift after having spent the last 3 years on the 3 to 11 shift. Don't get me wrong, I am LOVING having him home in the evenings and being able to eat as a family and cuddle on the couch in front of the fire each night. BUT on the flip side, hubby is an awesome cook! When he was working nights, the kids and I generally ate dinner with my parents who are also dieting so my suppers would be pretty low calorie (meats, steamed veggies, etc.). But now that hubby is home to cook, he has been making fabulous suppers that have had me being tempted into "just a little more" seconds, something I haven't done in a very long time. This is okay every now and then, but not on a routine basis. One night he also made a delicious red velvet cake with cream cheese icing for dessert. Hold me back! lol Sweets are my weakness and something I have to constantly be careful with. We rented movies the other night and ran by the pharmacy to grab something and I was in the mood for M&M's. However, instead of being semi-good and getting the little pack, we got a 3 lb. monstrosity. Why??!! I sure as heck didn't need that many M&Ms sitting around the house calling my name, but we got it anyway. Big mistake! HUGE mistake! Ate way too many that night, some more the next day, and you know how it goes. lol Thankfully the kiddies have nearly wiped those babies out (of course daddy and I have done our part to help with the cleanup process...it is our parental duty you know), the cake is down to only 1 slice (which my daughter most likely finished off today while she was home from school), and I have vowed to clean up my act. My weight is still doing okay. I'm averaging 137 lately which is okay, but not within the "range" I really want to stay in. My own fault and that's fine. On a positive note, figure I'd doing pretty great metabolism wise if I have been splurging way too much and still have been mainting around 137. Anyway...it's time to get back to the grind, get back to limiting my portions to ONE ONE ONE, and stay away from the junk food except every now and then (every night does not constitute "every now and then"). I had a lot of motivation to continue on my path of weight maintenance over the weekend. I have finally signed up for Facebook at the urging of several good friends. I was pleasantly surprised how many of my former classmates are on it and have had a blast reconnecting with them and catching up with how they are all doing. You can post pictures of yourself, family, etc. so I postd some of mine. I got several messages from old classmates telling me how great I look and one went even farther to say it looks like I just stepped out of high school while every one else has aged! Boy this made my head swell just a tad! lol It made me think back on the years before I lost weight and how back then, I would not have even THOUGHT of posting my picture, and if I did, it would most certainly have been a head shot only, which still would have embarrassed me beyond belief. But now, well now I was actually proud to post my picture! That feeling along made me remember how so very worth it every good food choice and every day at the gym or walking really was. I will forever hold onto that feeling of pride and accomplishment that I was reminded about when my friend sent me her message. Hope you all are doing well and continuing to fight your battle! The end is SO WORTH THE HARD WORK!!!

Productive Weekend

Hubby started his new schedule of being back on day shift last week and his off days are now Wed/Thu. This got me in the mindset of making the most of my being off and home alone on Fridays now. I got up at 6:30am and started my day of cleaning. Got the kiddies off to school and continued with my "to do" list. I literally spent about 13 hours that day cleaning the house and about 3 hours doing errands (groceries, donating clothes to the local nursing home, donating odds/ends to the Waterfront Mission, donating empty printer cartidges to the school, going to the bank). I didn't even stop to sit down and eat breakfast or lunch...I just made it and sat it on the counter and took a bite as I passed by the plate. lol Hubby took over making dinner while I continued to clean. Saturday I got up around 8:30am and started cleaning again. This went on all day except the time I took my oldest to/from the skating rink and to go out to dinner. I didn't stop until 11 that night. Sunday was more of the same until around 10pm. I'd pulled my back a bit on Sunday so I stayed home from work yesterday to relax. Didn't get up for the day until after noon and then I had lunch and did the remainder of my laundry. I am so proud when I look around at my immaculate house!! Ahhhh! It's been way too long since I took the time to really de-clutter and organize and it feels wonderful! With the hours and hours of cleaning I figured that more than made up for not exercising this weekend. Did you do anything that made you feel like you accomplished awesome things?

Family Response to the "New Me"....

....Or I should say the "new us" as both hubby and I have both lost weight since they last saw us (me the 150 lbs or so and him about 75 pounds). Thank you Karyn for the reminder about including this on my blog. They weren't completely surprised as we had sent out photo Christmas cards a couple of weeks before Christmas but were still shocked to see us in person as the card photo was pretty closeup so no one had the "full effect" until we arrived. Gary's mom talked about how tiny I was and how proud they were of what I have accomplished. I wish they'd made a bigger deal out of what my dear husband has done too but I made sure to point it out when no one else did! Granted he isn't at his goal weight yet but he has worked hard and I am so proud of him and want others to recognize his success. His sister was amazed too but unfortunately I think that made her feel worse. I say this because she has a lot of health problems that have contributed to her gaining at least everything I lost, probably more. I will continue to pray for her that the drs. figure things out so she can start to lose some weight soon. Hubby's other brothers haven't seen either of us since several months before we started losing weight, other than the photo card. We had a dinner for them the day after we arrived and the first thing one of the girlfriends said to me was 'OH my gosh...I have to ask, did you do it on your own or have the surgery??" I was so proud to be able to say it was all done with diet and exercise! I saw her again the day before we headed home and she showed me her "before" pic...before being before she gained weight. And she was talking about starting a diet too. While I certainly hope and pray that no one sees my weight loss and thinks badly about themselves, I am thrilled if I can be a small part of someone's motivation to get healthier! I couldn't help but feel so proud to go to family functions while up north and be the smallest one in the room (other than the kids), or to easily sit down in my husband's lap when all the chairs in the room were taken. I think that is always going to be one of my favorite things about having lost weight!

Back to the "Real World"

Vacation is over and I today was my first day back at work. It was sure rough getting out of bed this morning when the alarm went off (or truth be known, 5 minutes after the alarm went off when my dear husband lovingly dragged my lazy butt out of bed laughing the entire time). But thats okay, the "real world" isn't horribly bad and it was nice to get back to my own home. Our Christmas was wonderful as I hope was the same for each of you. Our day was very relaxing and enjoyable with all of our family. We left that evening heading north to Michigan and all was well until the last 60 miles when we hit ice...and ice in a HUGE way! At that point our speed began to average 10 to 15 mph IF we were lucky. Thank God for answered prayers and a hubby who grew up in that mess and remembers how to handle it. About 30 miles out we were caught behind a bad wreck that had us sitting for over half an hour. We gave up and tried alternate routes, the first of which was axed due to the interstate we were heading toward being closed. Back the other direction and ended up on a 2 lane road with horrible conditions but we were able to make it thru...instead of arriving at 830am as we expected, it was nearly 3pm. Then later that evening we got stuck 2 houses from the cottage we rented on Lake Michigan. Ugh! AND hubby and I both fell on the ice, I ended up with 2 nice bruises and we thought he broke his hand, thankfully he did not. Once hubby's family came to help out with the problem and get our car down to the cottage, I could breathe a little easier. Though I did tell him if the weather and roads did not get better, my butt was NOT leaving the cottage all week and if anyone wanted to visit us, they could come to us!! lol Thank God for more answered prayers in the way of rain all night which helped to clear the roads. The rest of the trip was great with much visiting but also lots of time spent with just Gary, me and the kiddies by the fire. AHHHH....relaxing! We headed home last Friday morning, stopped to spend 5 hours at a mall in Nashville and arrived home by midnight. Then bliss...two whole days to relax before going to work today. A perfect way to end a vacation!! I was a bit scared to get on the scale but I was pleasantly surprised that I was basically the same as when I left. How I"m not sure since I surely didn't worry too much about diets up north, but thats okay. Now I'm home and back to watching what I eat more closely. Also back to the gym during lunch today and though it was brutal and I wanted to quit early, I trudged forward and finished the entire workout. Tonight hubby and I will be continuing the routine we have started of spending some time on the Wii Fit the kiddies got for Christmas. I hope that each of you made some special memories this Christmas and were able to enjoy the holidays in moderation!