Hubba-hubba

I bought one of these sexy beasts:

I know you all envy my hotness. Hopefully it will help my lower back and belly feel more supported; I'll let you know how it goes...

I went into one of those little mall type dress shops today where almost everything is trendy, expensive and SMALL and all the girls working there are like 12 years old and a size 0. They had one (small) rack of plus size clothes.

I came out feeling old and fat and depressed. I hate that feeling.

Remind me not to do that again, okay?

Healthy beauty and fashion

I've really been enjoying this website: 5 Resolutions.

Be sure to check out the podcast from March 5--it's very cool.

Advise me!

I'm thinking about buying a support belly band. I've heard they can help prevent stretch marks (a little) and help with back support and all that good stuff.

I'm looking at the Mama Power (Spanx) and other belly support bands.

They are the opposite of sexy, I know. :)

Any thoughts?

Have you guys been watching...

How to Look Good Naked on Lifetime?

Talk about encouraging and loving your body! Good stuff. You can watch a few episodes online. I really enjoyed the last episode about a gal who was fixated on her hips and thighs--hit a little close to home for me.

I'm looking for just a nice black wedge to wear with pants...






too Mary Jane?

What do you think?

I read an interesting book this weekend - "Organic Housekeeping", lots of information, but, if you are germ-a-phobic like I am it might send you into a tailspin.

I've done a lot of cleaning this weekend. :)

I saw this dress in a catalog today and thought of Kristen. There were polka dot shoes, too.

As I was jumping over hurdles, climbing over cargo nets, and sliding down slides today I thought "Why can't working out be this much fun?". I'm sure I had to have been burning calories like crazy chasing Erin and her friend Tori around the play ground as we played our favorite game, secret agent. As we got ready to come home, I mentioned to Erin that it would be fun to include it in our morning walks. She thought so too. So, tomorrow morning at around 7:15 you'll find using playing on the play ground! Working out is so much more fun when you allow your inner child to take part!

No, really. I want to buy new spring clothes. Do you think it might hurry up some warmer weather?

I've been looking thru my closet to see what I actually "need" to add this year.

I ordered a couple of pair of shorts. I love Erika shorts from JC Penny - they fit comfortably and look nice. I got a hot pink and an aqua which I already own one pair of each but the color selection is minimum.

I will probably order a couple of tees from Eddie Bauer -their classic tee is my all time favorite.

I really need to find a shirt to wear with the blue linen pants I bought last year and never wore. I think I want a white wrap shirt, Cold Water Creek has one I like but I keep hoping I'll find something I like even more.

Other than that I don't need much, maybe a couple of sleeveless cotton shirts. They look a little dressier than a tee.

So have you guys seen anything you won't be able to live without for summer?

I want :

to have miraculously lost 50 pounds without having to diet
to have had a boob job
and to buy a new spring wardrobe

oh, well,

dream on

Happy New Year!!!!!!!!

Days are better when you start them like this. Gina, Erin, and I braved the mornings winter chill to walk at my favorite park. Though it sits just off of the freeway, it feels like it's part of a wild wilderness. We walked for 45 minutes and the sun rose. It was chilly, but not too cold when we weren't walking into the wind. It was quiet and beautiful. It was hard to drag my butt out of my warm bed, but once I was up I felt great. I'm not sure why I deprived myself of doing this for so long!?!

I know this site has evolved into something far more beautiful than our original intentions of being a weight loss tracking blog, and so I feel a little strange about posting my goals here anymore, but this is as good a place as any. Not to mention, I think my mom rarely visits here, if ever, so I can post what I'm about to post without to much thought of her reading it and being so excited she calls all the family. (If you are reading this mom, please don't call everyone!) For the past several months David and I have been seriously talking about having a baby. I don't want to blame it on the biological clock, but we aren't getting any younger! It's nothing we are thinking about doing with in the next week or anything, but I would like to be pregnant sometime in the next year. Preferably within a few months after we move. Yes, I know the move will be hectic and crazy, but we will have so much family support that I don't feel the slightest bit scared about having a baby several months after the move. In fact, this is the first time I've been willing to even consider having a baby. That being said, I am in no physical condition to get pregnant. I know my body could handle it, but I need to lose a significant amount of weight in order to have the healthy pregnancy I want. So, I will begin again this year. I will eat more fruits and vegetables and less chocolate and sweets. I will walk with or without Erin and David. I will focus on my goal of being healthy and fit so that we can build the family we dream of. I have a friend who is encouraging me. She's lost a significant amount of weight and kept it off for over a year. I know it will take hard work and dedication. I know that I can't expect to change my body, but I can expect to make my body the best it can be. I'm not looking to be a size 1 or even a 4. I'd be happy knowing my body is at the weight it functions best at. That being said, my goal is to lose 10% of my body weight. Once I've done that I'll re-evaluate and see where I need to be. I'll also be making a doctors appointment to see what the good ol doctor thinks about all of this. Wish me luck!
(I don't plan on making this a big deal on this blog, but I will keep you updated.)

me, too!

you know i love you, right?
Your presence is my life is such a gift. I love you all. Thanks for counting me as one of you.

LOVE. Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all....

Well, it is not snowing in Oklahoma today. It is almost 60 degrees and the sun is shining. The kids are out riding their four wheelers.

I just want to tell you all that being able to bounce things off of you over the past year has helped me more than you will ever know. I value your friendship, your wise words, your kindness, your encouragement and I wish for you the very best that life and love have to offer.

You guys totally ROCK!!!

Happy Winter Solstice

Celebrate the light!

i just thought it was funny....

KICK ME

I talked to my brother today, he was telling me that his wife, who is only three years older than me, is having so much pain in her body,especially her back right now, that she can hardly get up and do anything. She had knee surgery last year, she has trouble with her feet... blah, blah, blah.
My sister-in-law is probably one of the laziest humans I've ever known. She wasn't always like that but since her kids left home ten years ago she does nothing and I mean nothing. She sits in her chair and watches TV. She has gained 100 pounds in the last ten years, she smokes, she eats nothing but junk, takes tons of prescription drugs... and if she doesn't do something radically different, pretty soon she won't be able to get up and do anything about it.
This isn't a rant about what a bad person my sister-in-law is, it is a rant against getting older and lazy and allowing this happen to yourself.

A couple of months ago I made myself stop using the golf cart. It was just so easy to hop in Em's cart to go to the mail box or to the dog pen or up to Mother's, way too easy. So, I stopped. I make myself walk everywhere I go out here and it's a lot of walking.

I still haven't managed to get myself back into a regular walking routine - and shame on me for it.

I know there are things I need to be doing like weight bearing exercise and walking every day.

I guess I need a good kick in the butt to get me going again. I'm hoping that talking with my brother today will be some incentive.

I've been doing lots of brain exercise, I love the new DS and the game I bought, Brain Age, Brain Age 2, and Big Brain Academy.

So, if you feel like giving me a swift kick in the ass to get me going, please go right ahead!!

The elliptical is my new best friend. We meet once a day and it's been good. I did take a break during my period because I was too moody and apathetic to care. I know it would have made me feel better, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.
It's amazing to me how my attitude about working out can change so drastically from day to day. I recently went to dinner with a friend who has lost a significant amount of weight and was excited to talk to her about her journey because I assumed she was not in it for the weight loss, but for the health benefits. I was wrong. I left the dinner feeling so disappointed. Don't get me wrong, I think what she has done is amazing and I am happy for her, I just wanted someone who understood where I am coming from when I tell them that I'm jumping off the diet train and doing my darnedest not to get back on it. I'm taking the less followed bath of body love and acceptance and hoping that somewhere along the way I learn to love my body the best that I can and give it everything that it needs to be healthy even if I never drop a pound or change a size. I said all that to say that the weeks since that dinner haven't been so good. I have been eating whatever whenever just because I'm pissed that my size 16 body seems so deplorable to others that I need to starve it and beat it into submission.
I've since gotten over the bad attitude. I woke myself up and realized that eating myself into a size 24 isn't going to make matters any better for anyone. Besides, it was making me feel like crap and the whole point I'm trying to make is that I can feel good without being a size 0.